- India and Israel plan to restart Free Trade Agreement talks after July in Israel
- Initial in-person talks delayed due to West Asia conflict but virtual talks continued
- Focus areas include market access, services, technology, customs, and intellectual property
India-Israel Trade Deal: India and Israel are expected to restart formal negotiations for athe comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (FTA) after July, sources tracking the development told NDTV Profit. The upcoming second round of in-person discussions will take place in Israel. The next phase of face-to-face negotiations was initially intended to take place earlier, but the ongoing conflict in West Asia altered the timeline, pushing the high-level meeting to later this summer.
Despite the delays to in-person schedules, bilateral diplomatic channels have remained active, with both nations maintaining momentum through continuous virtual engagements and technical-level discussions. When the delegations meet in Israel, the second round of negotiations is expected to dive deep into crucial regulatory frameworks and trade pillars. The key areas of focus will include:
- Market Access: Streamlining import-export pathways to expand trade volumes.
- Services & Customs: Easing cross-border professional services and simplifying customs procedures.
- Technology & Innovation: Leveraging mutual strengths in tech ecosystems.
- Intellectual Property (IP): Establishing a robust IP framework to protect bilateral innovations.
"The FTA will open the doors for greater market access, flow of capital, ..both in goods and services, remove obstacles in doing business, provide clarity and predictability to our economic engagement," Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal had said in November in Tel Aviv. The groundwork for the trade pact was fast-tracked late last year when India and Israel officially signed the Terms of Reference (ToR) for the FTA in November 2025.
ALSO READ: India, Israel Begin First Round Of FTA Talks In New Delhi To Boost Trade, Investment
Following that milestone, the initial round of official talks concluded successfully in New Delhi in February 2026. During 2024-25, India's exports to Israel dipped 52% to USD 2.14 billion from USD 4.52 billion in 2023-24. Imports, too, fell 26.2% to USD 1.48 billion last fiscal year. The bilateral trade stood at USD 3.62 billion. India is Israel's second-largest trading partner in Asia.
Though bilateral trade is dominated by diamonds, petroleum products, and chemicals, recent years have witnessed an increase in areas of electronic machinery, high-tech products, communications systems, and medical equipment. Exports from India to Israel include pearls and precious stones, automotive diesel, chemical and mineral products, machinery and electrical equipment, plastics, textiles, apparel, base metals and transport equipment, and agricultural products. Imports include pearls and precious stones, chemical and mineral/fertiliser products, machinery and electrical equipment, petroleum oils, others.
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