Australia and India have started negotiations to develop their bilateral ties in different areas

According to two people with knowledge of the development, India and Australia have begun talks to advance bilateral ties in areas like digital trade, labor, traditional knowledge, micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), and sports, following the successful completion of a preliminary free trade agreement (FTA) last year.

On October 20, talks on a comprehensive agreement came to an end with New Delhi and Canberra agreeing to continue talks on five tracks and fourteen new areas: digital trade, government procurement, MSMEs, traditional knowledge, sports, gender, and environment, innovations, space, labor, and competition policy. They also requested anonymity.

India's exports to Australia increased by 17%

In the first six months of 2023–24 (April–September), India's exports to Australia increased by 17% to $4.9 billion, while imports decreased by 24.6% to $8.3 billion, as per official data from the commerce ministry. Petroleum products, medications, iron and steel products, electrical machinery, and clothing are among India's top exports to Australia. Pulses, minerals, gold, coal, and iron ore are its main imports. The second official stated, "The majority of imports are used as raw materials by our domestic industries."

The two partners decided to pursue a more comprehensive agreement, a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA), and have been working on its details since February. This comes after operationalizing the Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) with Australia in December of last year.

The ECTA was signed on April 2, 2022, and approved by the parliaments of Australia and India last November. Both nations want to expand the agreement's scope. The goal of completing CECA by the end of this year was reaffirmed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his counterpart Anthony Albanese during their May visit to Australia.

Australia ranked as India's tenth most popular export destination

The negotiations to broaden the ECTA's scope demonstrate the agreement's mutual benefits and enormous potential for future growth, according to the second official.

The effects of Australia and India's free trade agreement are apparent. With $5.48 billion in exports from April to October 2023, Australia ranked as India's tenth most popular export destination, up roughly 16% year over year, he continued.

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India ranked sixth among Australia's trading partners in 2022, with two-way trade worth $46.5 billion in goods and services. This information comes from the Australian Trade Department.

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