India announces $100 billion deal with European Trade Association

Foreign media outlets, citing Piyush Goyal, the Minister of Commerce of India, have reported that the country has reached an agreement on a 15-year trade deal with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) worth a total of $100 billion.

Reuters, citing the Minister of Commerce of India, has reported that the EFTA, including Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein, has agreed to invest in India for 15 years in exchange for the cancellation of tariffs on Indian industrial products imported into these countries.

The Minister of Commerce of India has described this trade agreement as “modern, fair, equitable, and beneficial for all five countries.”

Under this agreement, New Delhi will cancel most of its import tariffs on industrial products to EFTA member countries, and Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein will invest $100 billion in India over the next 15 years.

According to the Reuters report, the Swiss government has also confirmed this trade agreement in a separate statement, stating that India will gradually abolish 95.3 percent of its customs duties on imports from Switzerland over time.

Indian media have reported that the agreement between India and the European Free Trade Association – composed of Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein – has concluded nearly 16 years of negotiations.

India has entered into similar trade agreements with Australia and the United Arab Emirates in the past two years. Indian authorities say that another agreement with Britain is in its final stages.

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