India, US BTA not signed yet, 5 rounds of talks held: Govt to Parliament
India and the US are currently engaged in negotiations for a Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA), with five rounds of talks completed as of now. Simultaneously, India's Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the UK, finalized in May, aims for deeper economic integration and tariff concessions, benefiting various sectors including textiles, IT, and agriculture.
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New Delhi: India and US are negotiating a Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) which has not been signed as yet and five rounds of negotiations have been held till now, the government informed Parliament on Tuesday.The BTA negotiations were launched in March 2025.'India and the US are negotiating a Bilateral Trade Agreement which has not been signed as yet,' minister of state, commerce and industry ministry, told Lok Sabha in a written reply.In a separate reply, he also said that the last round of talks was held from July 14-18 in Washington.The minister also said that India's free trade agreement (FTA) with the UK is a modern, comprehensive and landmark agreement which seeks to achieve deepeconomic integration along with trade liberalisation and tariff concessions.'The FTA ensures comprehensive market access for goods, across all sectors, covering all of India's export interests. The FTA seeks to promote good regulatory practices and enhance transparency that are in sync with India's own focus on domestic reforms to enhance the ease of doing business,' he said.Emphasising that the government takes care of all the sensitivities associated with the FTA and ensures that India's interests are protected, he said: 'Every FTA is unique and is based on specific dynamics of trade and is aimed at maximizing benefits for both nations.'More than 99% of Indian exports are expected to benefit from tariff liberalization under the FTA including improved export opportunities in labour-intensive sectors such as textiles, leather, gems and jewellery, engineering goods, auto parts, and chemicals.The FTA will also support services exports due to commitments across trade in services such as IT/ITeS, financial services, professional services, other businessservices and educational services.This agreement will benefit Indian farmers, fishermen, workers, MSMEs, startups and innovators,' he said.While the India-UK FTA negotiations concluded in May, the talks with the EU are ongoing. Twelve rounds of negotiations have been held till recently, the last being from July 7-11 at Brussels.
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