The India-UK free trade agreement, signed in July last year, is likely to be implemented by early May as both sides work through the final set of pending issues, PTI reported on Thursday quoting officials.

The pact, formally known as the comprehensive economic and trade agreement (CETA), still requires completion of domestic procedures, including approval by the UK Parliament before it comes into force.

India-UK deal in final leg

The agreement is among India’s most major recent trade deals, offering duty-free access to about 99% of Indian exports to the UK. This is expected to benefit sectors such as textiles, leather, marine products, gems and jewellery, engineering goods and auto components.

In return, India will reduce tariffs on select British goods, including automobiles and whisky, while retaining protections for sensitive sectors.

The services component is equally important. India exported nearly $20 billion worth of services to the UK in 2023 and currently runs a services trade surplus of over $6 billion. The agreement opens up access across more than 130 UK services sub-sectors, including IT, financial services, education and professional services.

Bilateral trade between the two countries has already touched around $56 billion, with both sides targeting a doubling of this figure by 2030.

EU pact expected by year-end

On the India-European Union trade agreement, officials said the EU has indicated November as the likely timeline for ratification, with implementation expected within the year.

India and the EU concluded negotiations in January, with the deal being described by officials as the “mother of all deals” due to its scale.

The EU is India’s largest trading partner in goods, with bilateral trade valued at around €120 billion, alongside nearly €60 billion in services trade. Under the agreement, the EU is expected to eliminate tariffs on over 90 per cent of tariff lines, covering the bulk of Indian exports.

India, in turn, will reduce tariffs on a large share of imports, including high-value goods such as luxury cars and wines, though with phased reductions.

GCC, Israel talks slow amid conflict

Officials indicated that negotiations with Israel and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) — comprising Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain — have slowed due to the ongoing conflict in the region.

This comes despite strong trade linkages. India’s trade with the GCC stood at around $178 billion in FY25, making it the country’s largest trading partner bloc, while trade with Israel was valued at over $3.5 billion.

US deal hinges on market access

On the proposed India-US trade pact, officials said discussions are ongoing but underlined that any agreement would depend on securing preferential market access.

“Any trade agreement is based on preferential market access versus competitors. If we get that, then the trade deal stands,” an official said, according to the report.