London, Jul 25 (PTI) Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has said that businesses in Britain as well as India are optimistic about the free trade agreement which aims to double the bilateral trade to USD 112 billion by 2030.

The India-UK free trade agreement, also called Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), was signed by Goyal and his counterpart Jonathan Reynolds in presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Thursday.

In a post-signing interaction with business leaders from across sectors, Goyal said," Investors are looking to double down on their investments. People in industry and manufacturing are looking to expand markets. The services sector is excited about the growth potential. Everybody, whether from government or from the private sector, has a shared commitment to double the trade between the two countries by 2030." Anuj Chande, Partner at Grant Thornton UK and Head of its South Asia Business Group said," It (the deal) certainly comes across as a win-win for both countries with a huge reduction in tariffs and...this is the beginning of the journey and not the end.” Kishore Jayaraman, India Chair of the UK India Business Council (UKIBC), which facilitates trade between both countries, said the tariffs have been brought down to acceptable levels for both nations, so that the trade and economy can grow without any bottlenecks.

"But beyond that, it is a recognition that there are so many sectors, digital, tech, defence, life sciences, agriculture, where there are products and services that both nations have that can be brought to the people of both these nations at a much faster pace," he added. PTI AK ANU ANU

Free trade agreement drives tariff reductions and boosts investor confidence to expand bilateral trade and market access. The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement between India and the United Kingdom commits both public and private actors to double bilateral trade by 2030 through substantial tariff reductions and improved market access. The agreement targets removal of trade bottlenecks, expedited movement of goods and services, and identifies manufacturing, services, digital, technology, defence, life sciences and agriculture as primary beneficiary sectors, while signalling enhanced investor confidence and further capital deployment under an ongoing process of commercial integration.