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The Australia-India Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA), which came into effect in December 2022, has led to about $30 billion worth of Australian exports entering India tariff-free, with Australians saving around $225 million on goods from India, Don Farrell, Australia’s minister for trade and tourism, said in a statement on Wednesday.
Australia is keen to conclude a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) with India, Farrell said, speaking ahead of his meeting with Indian trade minister Piyush Goyal at the 19th Australia-India Joint Ministerial Commission in Adelaide.
“We are continuing negotiations on our next trade agreement with India, an ambitious CECA,” he said.
“Our government has also finished consultations on a new roadmap for Australia’s economic engagement with India—which presents enormous growth opportunities for Australian business in clean energy, agribusiness, education and skills, and tourism,” he added.
A CECA is a free-trade agreement between two countries that strengthens their bilateral trade.
As things stand, India is one of Australia’s largest trading partners, with two-way trade in goods valued at over $6.7 billion in 2023-24.
Bilateral trade between both sides, including goods and services, stood close to $50 billion at the end of calendar year 2023.
Australia and India first embarked on negotiations for a CECA in May 2011.
After nine rounds of discussions, talks were suspended in 2016 as both nations awaited the outcomes of other regional trade agreements.
In September 2021, the two countries formally revived the CECA talks, aiming to expedite an ECTA to rapidly liberalize and expand bilateral trade in goods and services.
The ECTA, which came into effect in December 2022, was intended to serve as a foundation for resuming negotiations on the broader CECA.
Negotiations have resumed for the more ambitious CECA, designed to build on the progress achieved under the ECTA and unlock the potential for deeper economic ties between Australia and India.
“Our government has also finished consultations on a new roadmap for Australia’s economic engagement with India, which presents enormous growth opportunities for Australian business in clean energy, agribusiness, education and skills, and tourism,” Farrell said.
“I look forward to meeting with Goyal and discussing how we can continue to advance the Australia-India economic relationship,” he added.
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