Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Saturday, Aug 30, 2025

Indian companies eye ‘game-changing’ potential of trade pact with GCC

Indian companies eye ‘game-changing’ potential of trade pact with GCC

Indian businesses are eyeing the potential of a free trade pact with Gulf countries, the Confederation of Indian Industry said on Sunday, as New Delhi recorded a significant rise in exports a year after such an agreement with the UAE.
India and the Gulf Cooperation Council agreed to resume talks on a free trade pact last November, the third such attempt following negotiations previously held in 2006 and 2008.

In 2021-22, their bilateral trade grew from $87 billion to $154 billion.

Indian businesses are excited about the potential of a free trade deal with the six-member union, said CII Senior Director Manish Mohan.

“The Free Trade Agreement with the GCC would be a game-changer in the region,” Mohan told Arab News on Sunday.

“Businesses are excited. They are realizing that there is a huge potential in the Gulf and the Middle East and North Africa region across sectors like health, trade and investment,” he added. “The GCC is also emerging as an important partner for India.”

India and the UAE are recording a trade increase of nearly 30 percent across different sectors after they signed the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement last February. The landmark deal reduced tariffs on around 80 percent of all goods and provided zero-duty access to 90 percent of Indian exports.

“There is remarkable growth,” Mohan said. “The CEPA agreement is a starting point, and we are looking at a huge upward trend between India and the UAE.”

Mohan said India’s trade pact with the UAE is a “win-win situation,” as the CII expects trade to reach $100 billion in five years.

The UAE is India’s third largest trading partner after the US and China, with a bilateral trade volume of $43.3 billion in 2020-21, which the CII said rose to $57 billion following the agreement.

“We are seeing an enhanced market access that is being offered under the India-UAE CEPA,” he said.

“The UAE is a gateway to not only African countries but also central Asian countries. This will have positive spins with other countries as well as other regions through UAE. Everybody would benefit from the CEPA.”

The Indian Embassy in the UAE said the agreement has “unleashed new opportunities” in trade.

“Exporters from both sides have benefited immensely since the CEPA entered into force,” Sunjay Sudhir, India’s ambassador to the UAE, told Arab News.

“The CEPA has opened a new frontier for bilateral trade.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Iran Faces Escalating Water Crisis as Protests Spread
More Than Half a Million Evacuated as Typhoon Kajiki Heads for Vietnam
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Cristiano Ronaldo Makes Surprise Stop at New Hong Kong Museum
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
High-Stakes Trump-Putin Summit on Ukraine Underway in Alaska
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
Sam Altman challenges Elon Musk with plans for Neuralink rival
Australia to Recognize the State of Palestine at UN Assembly
The Collapse of the Programmer Dream: AI Experts Now the Real High-Earners
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Nine people have been hospitalized and dozens of salmonella cases have been reported after an outbreak of infections linked to certain brands of pistachios and pistachio-containing products, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
Tariffs, AI, and the Shifting U.S. Macro Landscape: Navigating a New Economic Regime
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Germany’s Economic Breakdown and the Return of Militarization: From Industrial Collapse to a New Offensive Strategy
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
×