New Delhi:

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal met UK Secretary of State for Business and Trade Jonathan Reynolds in Italy and discussed plans to take forward the negotiations on the proposed free trade agreement, an official statement said on Wednesday.

The bilateral meeting took place on the sidelines of the G7 Trade Ministers’ meeting at Reggio Calabria, Italy.

The India-UK talks for the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) began in January 2022. The 14th round of talks stalled as the two nations stepped into their general election cycles.

“Mr Goyal congratulated Mr. Jonathan Reynolds on his appointment and discussed deepening bilateral economic relations. The conversation included plans to take forward the discussions on FTA between India and the UK,” the commerce ministry said.

In an FTA, two or more trading partners either significantly reduce or eliminate customs duties on the maximum number of goods traded between them. Besides, they also ease norms to promote and facilitate trade in services and investments.

There are pending issues in both goods and services sectors.

The Indian industry is demanding greater access for its skilled professionals from sectors like IT and healthcare in the UK market, besides market access for several goods at nil customs duty.

On the other hand, the UK is seeking a significant cut in import duties on goods such as scotch whiskey, electric vehicles, lamb meat, chocolates and certain confectionary items.

Britain is also looking for more opportunities for UK services in Indian markets in segments like telecommunications, legal and financial services (banking and insurance).

The two countries are also negotiating a bilateral investment treaty (BIT). There are 26 chapters in the agreement, which include goods, services, investments and intellectual property rights.

The bilateral trade between India and the UK increased to USD 21.34 billion in 2023-24 from USD 20.36 billion in 2022-23.

The Labour Party’s election manifesto for the recent polls also committed to clinching the deal.

Mr Goyal also holds meetings with other counterparts at the G7 Trade Ministers’ meeting.

“Discussions with Valdis Dombrovskis, Executive Vice President of the European Commission focused on promoting India-EU trade and economic collaborations, including ongoing FTA negotiations,” it said.

During his meeting with New Zealand’s Trade Minister Todd McClay, both ministers explored opportunities to enhance bilateral trade and investment ties for mutual growth.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Britain’s newly-elected Prime Minister Keir Starmer spoke to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday morning and said he stood ready to conclude a Free Trade Agreement that worked for both sides, Downing Street said.

India and the UK have been negotiating a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) for over two years with a Conservative Party-led government but the talks were stalled in the 14th round amidst the general election cycles in both countries.

It is now expected to be picked up by the new Starmer-led Labour government, which was voted in with a landslide this week.

According to the Downing Street readout of the newly-elected UK Prime Minister’s Indo-Pacific-related international calls on Saturday, the call with Modi seems to have been the first followed by Japan and Australia.

“The leaders exchanged congratulations on their respective election wins, and reflected on the strength of the relationship between the UK and India,” a Downing Street spokesperson said.

“Discussing the Free Trade Agreement, the Prime Minister said he stood ready to conclude a deal that worked for both sides. The leaders hoped to meet at the earliest opportunity,” the spokesperson added.

Pleased to speak with @Keir_Starmer. Congratulated him on being elected as the Prime Minister of the UK. We remain committed to deepening Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and robust - economic ties for the progress and prosperity of our peoples and global good.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 6, 2024

Both sides have been working towards clinching a pact to enhance the GBP 38.1 billion bilateral trading partnership since January 2022, when Boris Johnson was the British prime minister.

The talks have since had to contend with political turmoil in the UK that first led to a short-lived Liz Truss premiership followed by Rishi Sunak as Britain’s first prime minister of Indian heritage.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)