Australia has restarted discussions with India for the conclusion of the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) which is expected to build upon the Economic Cooperation Trade Agreement (ECTA) signed on April 2, 2022 and effective from December 29, 2022.
At an event organised by the CII in Calcutta on Tuesday, Nicholas McCaffrey, deputy high commissioner of Australia to India, said that following the signing of ECTA, the trade between the two countries has grown significantly.
“Thanks to ECTA, India’s iron and steel exports (to Australia) are up 16 per cent. Iron and steel is also among Bengal’s major exports to our country. Removal of tariff on import of Australia’s coking coal has made Indian steel production cheaper and more competitive,” McCaffrey said.
He added that among the other benefits of the ECTA, Australian purchases of Indian apparel has seen an increase of 10 per cent, while agri exports from India have also grown.
Under the ECTA agreement, tariffs have been eliminated in over 85 per cent of Australian goods exported to India and locked them at zero, including on critical minerals and non-ferrous metals. Moreover, the tariff on a further 5 per cent of exports is expected to be phased out to zero in the coming years.
McCaffrey said the Indian government has set ambitious goals such as 500 GW renewable capacity, expanding electric vehicles and battery manufacturing as well as expanding the country’s exports to $2 trillion by 2030.
“We think Australia is very well positioned to work with India to achieve these goals. With the conclusions of your elections, we have moved quickly to re-engage with Piyush Goyal (Union commerce minister) and his senior bureaucrats to conclude negotiations to upgrade ECTA to CECA,” he said.
“India became Australia’s 9th largest trading partner, while Australia ranked as India’s 13th largest... The free trade agreement will enhance trade ties, potentially boosting bilateral trade in goods and services to surpass $70 billion within the next five years,” CII said in a statement.
