Trade pact: Most Indian goods to get duty-free access in Australia
New Delhi: India and Australia on Saturday signed an economic cooperation and trade agreement under which Canberra would provide duty-free access in its market for over 96 percent of Indian goods.
Indian exports to Australia include textiles, leather, jewellery and sports products, which will all get a boost.
The India-Australia Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement was inked by Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Australian Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment Dan Tehan via a virtual ceremony, in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Australian counterpart Scott Morrison, the media reported.
Welcoming the move, Modi said: “This is truly a watershed moment for India-Australia relations.”
Morrison also hailed it saying the pact will further deepen Australia’s close ties with India.
The agreement will help boost bilateral trade from USD 27 billion to USD 45-50 billion in the next five years, Goyal said.
Australia is offering zero-duty access to India for about 96.4 per cent of exports (by value) from day one. This covers many products which currently attract 4 to 5 percent customs duty in Australia.
Labor-intensive sectors, which would gain immensely, include textiles and apparel, a few agricultural and fish products, leather, footwear, furniture, sports goods, jewelry, machinery, electrical goods, and railway wagons.
Australia is the 17th largest trading partner of India, while New Delhi is Canberra’s 9th largest partner. Bilateral trade in goods and services stood at USD 27.5 billion in 2021. India’s goods exports were worth USD 6.9 billion and imports aggregated to USD 15.1 billion in 2021.
Major exports by India to Australia include petroleum products, textiles and apparel, engineering goods, leather, chemicals and gems, and jewelry.
Imports mainly include raw materials, coal, minerals and intermediate goods.
(VP)
