India’s free-trade deal run: UK sealed, now to the EU, the US, and New Zealand

With the latest Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) with the United Kingdom, India adds one more free trade agreement (FTA) ahead of the nation deep in negotiations with the European Union and, famously, Donald Trump’s United States.

Back in May, India’s chief negotiator, L. Satya Srinivas, followed up after Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal visited Europe, where he met his counterpart, Maros Sefcovic, the European Commissioner for Trade.

Then, in June, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, while speaking at the German Marshall Fund (GMF) Forum in Brussels, expressed confidence in the year-end timeline set for the completion of the India-EU FTA.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted ‘Vision 2035’ during the latest India-UK FTA announcement, and all of this would get a huge lift if India manages to close the massive free trade deal with the US this year.

But it doesn’t stop there—India is not shying away from more free trade deals. In fact, it now looks to the island nation of New Zealand, in a bid to “enhance trade flows, support investment linkages, promote supply chain resilience, and establish a predictable and enabling environment for businesses in both countries.”

The Ministry of Commerce confirmed that the second round of proposed FTA negotiations with New Zealand was concluded on July 25. The trade deal talks, which began in March, will now enter the third round in September.

India’s bilateral merchandise trade with New Zealand was up 48 per cent year-on-year to $1.3 billion in FY2024-2025.

“The Third Round of negotiations is scheduled to be held in New Zealand in September 2025,” read the ministry statement, “The inter-sessional virtual meetings will maintain the forward trajectory set in the second round.”

In the second round of talks, the ministry stated that it saw a “significant advancement in multiple areas, including Trade in Goods and Services, Investment, Rules of Origin, Customs Procedures and Trade Facilitation, Technical Barriers to Trade, Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, and Economic Cooperation.”

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