NEW DELHI: India and Australia will sign an interim free trade deal tomorrow where tariffs will be removed on more than 85 per cent of Australian goods exported to India, valued at $12.6 billion annually.
Meanwhile, about 96 per cent of goods imports from India are expected to enter Australia duty-free when the agreement takes effect.
The Australian government says tariffs will be eliminated on sheep meat, wool, fresh rock lobsters and some metallic ores. Tariffs will be nil for products like avocados, nuts, beans, cherries and there will be reduced tariffs for wines.
Experts says that the Australian government has been able to finalise this, just before their elections.
India is Australia’s seventh-largest trade partner, but attempts to diversify trade have taken on extra urgency given the increasingly rocky relationship with top-trading partner China.
The interim trade deal is three months later than the deadline, as there were many hiccups.
The full report is yet to be released.
Australian Prime Minister, Scot Morrison, has said that the interim agreement will be signed virtually tomorrow and will `open big doors into the worlds fastest growing major economy for Australian farmers and manufactuers.
Australia has offered to provide new access for young people from India to participate in working holidays in Australia, with places set at 1,000 a year.
The Australian government argued the move would “contribute to both workforce requirements and to boost tourism to support our post-Covid recovery”.
Indian students with a bachelor’s degree with first-class honours will also be allowed to stay in Australia for three years after their graduation, rather than the current two years. This applies only to the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and information and communications technology (ICT) sectors.