India and the four-nation European bloc EFTA penned a free trade agreement on Sunday, targeting increased investments and exports in vital domestic sectors such as IT, audio-visual, and skilled professional mobility.
The EFTA, consisting of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland, solidified a comprehensive deal with 14 chapters covering areas like trade in goods, rules of origin, intellectual property rights (IPRs), services, investment promotion, government procurement, and trade facilitation.
India's ambitious aim includes securing a $50 billion investment commitment within the first decade post-implementation, followed by another $50 billion over the subsequent five years from EFTA member countries. This commitment is tied to duty reduction, with the ultimate goal of generating 1 million direct employments in India through these investments.
The agreement is expected to benefit sectors representing nearly all industrial goods exported from India to the EFTA bloc, promising significant economic advantages for both parties.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the India-EFTA trade agreement symbolises our shared commitment to open, fair and equitable trade.
He also said that the global leadership of EFTA countries in innovation and R&D across diverse spheres like digital trade, banking and financial services, and pharma will open up new doors of collaboration.
"Heartiest Congratulations and best wishes to the negotiators and signatories involved in the signing of India-EFTA Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA)," Modi said in a written message.
"In the last 10 years, India's economy has taken a quantum leap, moving from being the world's eleventh largest economy to the fifth largest. Our next goal is to make India's economy in the world," the Prime Minister said.
The Prime Minister's statement was read by Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal here in the presence of ministers and officials of EFTA countries.
Union Minister Piyush Goyal, quoting PM Narendra Modi, said, "Despite structural diversities in many aspects, our economies possess complementarities that promise to be a win-win situation for all nations. With the opening up of enormous trading and investment opportunities, we have reached a new level of trust and ambition. The trade agreement symbolizes our shared agreement to open fair, equitable trade, as well as generate growth and employment for the youth."
He further said, "India will extend all possible support to EFTA countries and facilitate industry and businesses not only to achieve the committed targets but also to go beyond them. May this agreement mark the beginning of a new chapter in the journey of our nations towards a more prosperous future for us all."
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