Page 3 - Fta

British PM Rishi Sunak committed to FTA with India, says Downing Street

Intensive negotiations continue towards a free trade agreement (FTA) between India and the UK and new British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is committed to achieving a balanced deal, Downing Street said on Wednesday. Sunak, who took charge at 10 Downing Street last week, had a "very warm" introductory call with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during which both sides expressed their commitment towards an FTA. The UK Prime Minister's office also reiterated that the focus remains on a balanced trade deal that benefits both sides and therefore no timeframe is being specified after a proposed Diwali timeline had to be abandoned last month amid political turmoil in the UK. "Both sides are very committed to it, intensive negotiations are continuing led by the Department for International Trade (DIT)," a spokesperson told reporters at a Downing Street briefing. "The Prime Minister had a very warm, introductory call with Prime Minister Modi last week. In terms of the speed of it [FTA], we have be

Next round of trade talks with India expected shortly: UK Minister

No discussion on immigration visas, says Greg Hands in response to question about another minister's controversial comment

UK completed majority of sections of free trade agreement with India

Despite economic and political turmoil, the UK has completed most of the sections of the much-awaited free trade agreement with India.Trade Department Minister Greg Hands on Wednesday said that - Britain has completed the majority of sections of a free trade agreement with India but will only sign off on the deal once happy that it is fair and reciprocal."We have already closed the majority of chapters and look forward to the next round of talks shortly. We are working towards the best deal for both sides and won't sign until we have a deal that is fair, reciprocal and ultimately in the best interests of the British people and the UK economy," Hands told parliament.He further questioned Labour Party whether they will ever support any UK trade deal as the party earlier had blocked such deals in past."Good to be back at the dispatch box today answering a Labour Urgent Question on a trade deal with India. Now a question to Labour: when will they ever support any UK trade deal? They ...

India trade deal matters more than date, says UK trade minister

The Diwali timeline for a draft FTA had been announced by former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson during his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi in April

Wait for India-UK free trade agreement likely to extend until mid-2023

One of the officials said that the trade deal between India and the UK is at the last stage

FTA with India no longer working to Diwali deadline: UK Trade Secretary

The free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations with India are no longer working towards a Diwali deadline, UK Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch has confirmed. During a visit to a Scotch whisky distillery on Thursday, the Cabinet minister in charge of the FTA negotiations at the Department for International Trade (DIT) said the deal being lined up with India would bring great wins for the industry as the steep tariffs of up to 150 per cent are set to be slashed. However, while the negotiations are progressing well, signing a draft agreement by October 24 is no longer the goal. "We are close. We're still working on a deal. One of the things that has changed is that we are no longer working to the Diwali deadline, Badenoch told the BBC. We've closed a lot of chapters (the sections for the negotiating text). The negotiations are progressing well. But we want to focus on the quality of the deal rather than the speed of the deal. Given the changes that have taken place not just in government b

UK home secy and her remarks on Indian migrants: Who is Suella Braverman?

Braverman's remarks on Indians overstaying in the UK have reportedly annoyed the officials in New Delhi and the India-UK FTA is on a verge of collapse

Govt considering forming units to build expertise in Free Trade Agreements

The objective of building dedicated units in the FTA areas is to enable India to negotiate deals with other nations at the World Trade Organization from a position of strength

CBIC floats new norms to curb undervaluation of goods by importers

Nove comes after customs dept observed several consignments from South-East Asia in which rules of origin were flouted, and the FTA route was being used to evade duties

FM radio broadcasting policy relaxes recasting and ownership norms

The centre has also accepted the long pending demand of the radio industry to remove the 15% national cap on channel holding

Invest in India story, MSME sector must be promoted: Goyal to industry

Goyal's comments come after Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, recently asked India Inc what is stopping them from investing

India-UK free-trade agreement: Carmakers object to sharp import duty cut

India's auto industry push for a phased duty reduction to protect interests

Post FTA, non-petroleum exports to UAE up 14% in June-August: Govt

Growth in shipments to Emirates is 5x that to the rest of the world; surge primarily led by gems and jewellery, electrical equipment

New Zealand seeks trade with India outside FTA, milk: Damien O'Connor

'We are very big in wood logs, which is among the single biggest items of export to India'

G20 trade ministerial: WTO reforms, supply chains may dominate agenda

Minister Goyal is expected to hold bilateral meetings with counterparts from member countries

FTA may boost India's exports to Bangladesh by $10 billion in five years

For Bangladesh, the potential of additional exports to India could range from $3 billion to $5 billion in a time span of 10 years

Looking at duty-free access for ODOP products in FTAs: Piyush Goyal

The minister also called for integration of One District One Product initiative with ONDC

FTA provisions over Rules of Origin to prevail in case of conflicts: CBIC

Exemptions specified in Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with regard to country of origin will prevail in case of conflict between revenue department and importer, the finance ministry has said. In an instruction to chief commissioners, the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) said the customs field officers should be sensitive to applying CAROTAR and maintain consistency with the provisions of relevant trade agreement or its Rules of Origin. Customs(Administration of Rules of Origin under Trade Agreements) or CAROTAR Rules, came into effect from September 21, 2020. It empowers the customs officers to ask the importer to furnish further information, consistent with the trade agreement, in case the officer has reasons to believe that the country-of-origin criteria have not been met. Where the importer fails to provide the requisite information, the officer can make further verification consistent with the trade agreement. "In the event of a conflict between a provision of th

EU wants India to prohibit 'discriminatory buy national practices': Report

India's Make in India and Atmanirbhar initiatives aim to favour domestic manufacturing and discourage imports, the European Union said

India-UK trade likely to double by 2030: Grant Thornton-CII report

The UK is likely to look at reducing tariffs on products such as apples, UK-manufactured medical devices and machinery