India, EU to begin 14th round of trade pact talks in Brussels from Monday

Senior officials of India and the 27-nation European Union (EU) will commence the next round of talks for a proposed free trade agreement on Monday in Brussels to iron out differences on issues for early conclusion of the negotiations, an official said.

This will be the 14^th round of negotiations between the two sides. The five-day talks will begin on October 6, the official said.

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has recently expressed hope that the two sides will sign the agreement soon.

The pact aims at boosting two-way commerce and investments.

Goyal is also likely to meet EU Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic in South Africa later this month to review the progress of talks, as the deadline to conclude the negotiations is December.

Sefcovic and the European Commission’s Agriculture Commissioner Christophe Hansen were here last month to review the progress of talks with Goyal.

Both sides have targeted to conclude negotiations by December.

In June 2022, India and the EU bloc resumed negotiations for a comprehensive FTA, an investment protection agreement and a pact on geographical indications after a gap of over eight years. It was stalled in 2013 due to differences on the level of opening up markets.

Besides demanding significant duty cuts in automobiles and medical devices, the EU wants tax reduction in other products like wine, spirits, meat, poultry, and a strong intellectual property regime.

Indian goods’ exports to the EU, such as ready-made garments, pharmaceuticals, steel, petroleum products, and electrical machinery, can become more competitive if the pact sails through.

The India-EU trade pact negotiations cover 23 policy areas or chapters, including trade in goods, trade in services, investment, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, technical barriers to trade, trade remedies, rules of origin, customs and trade facilitation, competition, trade defence, government procurement, dispute settlement, intellectual property rights, geographical indications, and sustainable development.

India’s bilateral trade in goods with the EU was USD 136.53 billion in 2024-25 (exports worth USD 75.85 billion and imports worth USD 60.68 billion), making it the largest trading partner for goods.

The EU market accounts for about 17 per cent of India’s total exports, and the bloc’s exports to India constitute 9 per cent of its total overseas shipments.

In addition, the bilateral trade in services between India and the EU was estimated at USD 51.45 billion in 2023.