NEW DELHI: With the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between India and the UK kicking in on Wednesday, 50 consignments of goods worth over $140 million were shipped to the UK on the first day of the agreement’s implementation, the Union commerce ministry said.
“CETA will give fresh momentum to our farmers, entrepreneurs and MSMEs. Several sectors will gain stronger access to the UK market. It will also deepen cooperation in technology, professional services and innovation, while supporting greater mobility for skilled Indian talent,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a social media post on Wednesday.
With the FTA taking effect, several labour-intensive sectors such as textiles, apparel, handicrafts, engineering goods, and gems and jewellery are expected to gain zero-duty access to the UK market. Exporters from sectors including textiles, gems and jewellery, and marine products have already dispatched consignments at zero duty on the first day of the agreement.
The Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) said that around 30 exporters shipped gold, diamond, silver and platinum jewellery worth $10 million to the UK on Wednesday. The industry body expects exports to the UK to touch $2.5 billion over the next three years.
Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said the CETA and the Agreement on Social Security have come into force, delivering zero-duty market access for nearly 99% of India’s exports, covering almost 100% of trade value.
According to Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal, the trade facilitation framework in terms of rules of origin, certification and customs preparedness to handle the new FTA has been put in place to ensure that exporters can take advantage of the agreement from day one.
Rules of origin certificates are being issued through the DGFT portal, and customs facilitation is being undertaken at ports and airports to ensure that consignments are dispatched under the CETA, the commerce secretary informed the media on Wednesday.
