India-Australia bilateral trade surges to ₹1.35 lakh crore in FY25 marking ECTA milestone

New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): India and Australia’s merchandise trade reached ₹1.35 lakh crore during the April-November period of the current fiscal year (FY25) according to the government. This marks a significant milestone since the implementation of the India-Australia Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (Ind-Aus ECTA) which has propelled bilateral merchandise trade to more than double from ₹1 lakh crore in 2020-21 to ₹2.15 lakh crore in 2022-23. In FY 2023-24 total bilateral trade stood at ₹1.98 lakh crore with India’s exports to Australia growing by 14%. The ECTA, now completing two years has been instrumental in fostering mutual growth and highlighting the complementary strengths of the two economies. It has also created new opportunities for MSMEs businesses and employment further solidifying economic ties.The Ministry of Commerce and Industry emphasized India’s commitment to sustaining this progress through enhanced collaboration and innovative initiatives in alignment with the vision of making India a developed nation by 2047. Both nations aim to further deepen economic integration with a target to achieve bilateral trade of ₹8.3 lakh crore by 2030.

Data exchange on preferential imports between India and Australia in 2023 underscores the agreement’s success with export utilization at 79% and import utilization at 84%. Key sectors like textiles, chemicals and agriculture have witnessed significant growth. The agreement has also facilitated diversification with exports of gold studded with diamonds and turbojets emerging as new trade lines. Essential raw materials like metalliferous ores cotton and wood have strengthened India’s industries contributing to the mutual benefits of the partnership. However sectors such as electronics and engineering have additional growth potential. To build on the momentum created by ECTA, negotiations for the India-Australia Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) are ongoing. With 10 formal rounds of discussions completed CECA aims to advance the bilateral trade agenda with even greater ambition laying a robust foundation for long-term economic collaboration.