India-EU FTA Talks Enter Final Leg As Goyal Heads To Brussels, EU Team Lands In Delhi

Trade negotiations between India and the European Union have entered the final stretch, with high-level exchanges kicking off on both sides as the two partners aim to conclude their long-pending free trade agreement (FTA) by the end of 2025.

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal is in Brussels to meet his EU counterpart Maroš Šefčovič, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission, to "intensify efforts, provide strategic direction and political impetus" to the negotiations, officials said.

Simultaneously, a seven-member delegation from the European Parliament’s Trade Committee arrives in New Delhi today, marking the start of a series of ministerial and parliamentary-level engagements.

The visiting team will also interact with Indian industry associations such as the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) to assess business priorities and remaining gaps in the trade talks.

According to officials, the final discussions are expected to focus on market access, non-tariff measures, and regulatory cooperation, areas where both sides have yet to achieve convergence.

The India–EU FTA, once concluded, would mark one of India’s most significant trade pacts, covering goods, services, investment protection, and sustainable trade. Negotiations were relaunched in 2022 after a gap of nearly nine years, with both sides committing to a "modern, balanced, and mutually beneficial" agreement. The EU is India’s third-largest trading partner, accounting for around €120 billion in goods trade in 2023.