India won't open the dairy sector to free trade: Minister Piyush Goyal

Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said on Monday, December 24, that India won’t open the dairy sector to free trade, shortly followed by the announcement of New Delhi about the conclusion of a free trade agreement with New Zealand. Apart from agriculture, the dairy sector is believed to be a significant stumbling block in the conclusion of a similar agreement with the US, which is India’s largest export partner. The Minister said that talks with Washington related to a trade agreement were at an advanced stage. Not only this, but New Delhi will also roll out talks for the terms of a trade deal with Canada.

No duty concessions in the dairy sector to New Zealand

Notably, India has not given any duty concessions in the dairy sector to New Zealand, despite being a key demand from that country. Interestingly, a host of domestic goods from sectors such as textiles, footwear, engineering and marine products will get duty-free access in New Zealand under the India-New Zealand free trade agreement. Surprisingly, the agreement, likely to be signed in the next three months and implemented next year. New Zealand has committed to facilitating investments of USD 20 billion into India over the next 15 years. The commerce ministry said that the elimination of tariffs on 100 per cent of its tariff lines offers duty-free access for all Indian exports.

Interestingly, this market access improves the competitiveness of India’s labour-intensive sectors, including textiles, apparel, leather, footwear, marine products, gems and jewellery, handicrafts, engineering goods and automobiles.

FTA to offer entry and stay provision for Indian Professionals

Apart from this, it also said that India secured commitments in high-value sectors such as IT and IT-enabled services, professional services, education, financial services, tourism, construction and other business services, opening significant new opportunities for Indian service suppliers and high-skill employment. The free trade agreement (FTA) offers improved entry and stay provisions for Indian professionals, students and youth, including work opportunities during studies, post-study work pathways, dedicated visa arrangements and a Working Holiday visa framework.