The deal will expand market access for Indian exports to Europe while easing entry for European investments and goods, such as cars and beverages, into Asia’s third-largest economy.<\/p>\n
“This is a perfect example of a partnership between two major economies of the world… This agreement represents 25% of the global GDP and one-third of global trade,” Modi said while inaugurating the India Energy Week conference on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The EU is India’s largest trading partner in goods, with bilateral merchandise trade, external<\/a> reaching $136bn (\u00a399.4bn) in 2024-25, nearly doubling over a decade.<\/p>\n Talks for a deal between India and the EU started in 2007 but stalled in 2013 over roadblocks in market access and regulatory demands. Discussions were formally restarted in July 2022.<\/p>\n The main sticking points were access to India’s automobile market, agriculture goods and carbon-linked tariffs – and analysts will be reading the fine print to see what the final agreement says on these issues.<\/p>\n Officials from both sides worked hard over the past few days to finalise outstanding chapters of the agreement, aiming to wrap it up before the EU leaders’ visit.<\/p>\n The agreement comes as pressure grows on Delhi and Brussels to secure alternative markets for exporters.<\/p>\n In the past seven months, India signed major trade agreements with the UK<\/a>, Oman and New Zealand, and a 2024 pact signed with the four-nation European Free Trade Association bloc of Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein has come into effect. <\/p>\n The EU, meanwhile, signed a trade deal<\/a> with South Asian trade bloc Mercosur earlier this month after 25 years of negotiation.<\/p>\n Follow BBC News India on Instagram, external<\/a>, YouTube,, external<\/a> Twitter, external<\/a> and Facebook, external<\/a>.<\/p>\n