Rebecca Evans MS, Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Energy and Planning
The UK and India governments have formally signed a new Free Trade Agreement (FTA) today. Negotiations have now been completed, and the agreement is on course to be ratified and brought into force over the coming months.
India is an important partner and market for Wales. Goods trade between India and Wales was valued at £795.1m in the year ending March 2025 of which imports and exports were valued at £596.8m and £198.3m respectively. This makes India our 13th largest export market and 10th largest import market. Latest services trade data for 2022 estimates the value of services trade to be around £373m. India is also currently the 5th largest investor in Wales with 45 investment projects since 2012.
As with any FTA, this deal will provide practical benefits and trade opportunities to Welsh businesses, particularly for our food and drinks sector, and our advanced manufacturing sector. I am particularly pleased to see the inclusion of sustainable trade chapters in areas such as environment and gender in the final agreement. This is the first time that India has agreed to provisions as comprehensive as these.
Engagement between the UK government and the devolved governments on this FTA has been positive and commendable, acting as an example of effective and good collaboration that should be replicated in other trade policy areas and trade negotiations.
Now that the full treaty text and impact assessment is available, my officials will conduct a full assessment and publish a report detailing our perspective on the FTA and its potential impact on Wales.
This statement is being issued during recess in order to keep members informed. Should members wish me to make a further statement or to answer questions on this when the Senedd returns I would be happy to do so.