India likely to sign free trade pact with EFTA

The Union Cabinet on Thursday discussed the proposed free trade agreement between India and four European nation bloc EFTA and the pact is likely to be inked on Sunday, said sources.

The negotiations for the pact with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) members — Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland — have concluded.

The pact is expected to be signed on Sunday here, sources added.

India and EFTA have been negotiating the pact, officially dubbed as Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA), since January 2008 to boost economic ties.

The agreement has several chapters including trade in goods, rules of origin, intellectual property rights (IPRs), trade in services, investment promotion and cooperation, trade and sustainable development, and trade facilitation.

EFTA has 29 free trade agreements (FTAs) with 40 partner countries, including Canada, Chile, China, Mexico, and Korea.

Under free trade pacts, two trading partners significantly reduce or eliminate customs duties on the maximum number of goods traded between them, besides easing norms to promote trade in services and investments.

EFTA countries are not part of the European Union (EU). It is an inter-governmental organisation for the promotion and intensification of free trade. It was founded as an alternative for states that did not wish to join the European community.

India’s exports to EFTA countries during 2022-23 stood at $1.92 billion against $1.74 billion in 2021-22. Imports aggregated at $16.74 billion during the last fiscal compared to $25.5 billion in 2021-22.

The trade gap is in favour of the EFTA group, according to the commerce ministry data. PTI