New Delhi, May 11 -- The free trade agreement (FTA) signed recently by India and the UK has been touted by both sides as historic. The Indian government claims 99% of Indian exports will benefit from zero duty. More importantly, employees of Indian firms who have been transferred to the UK for work don't have to make social security contributions for three years - a measure aimed at reducing employee costs. From the UK's perspective, Indian tariffs on products such as alcoholic beverages (including Scotch whisky), food products and cars are set to drop.

Days after the deal was announced, the UK concluded a separate deal with the US. The UK government estimates the India-UK FTA will add an additional 25.5 billion pounds in trade per year ...