India, Jan. 20 -- After concluding Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with Oman and the UK in 2025, India finalised negotiations for an FTA with New Zealand on December 22-nine months after talks commenced in March. This makes it one of India's fastest-concluded FTAs, reflecting strong political intent on both sides.

One of the elements of the agreement that gained traction in India is the elimination of duties on 100% of Indian exports to New Zealand. This includes the immediate removal of tariffs on 8,284 New Zealand tariff lines. Existing New Zealand tariffs-averaging around 10% on key Indian exports such as textiles, leather goods, ceramics, and automobiles will be eliminated, besides the average applied tariff rate of 2.2%. The agreement ...