India and Australia on Saturday concluded the 11th round of negotiations on their Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (Ind-Aus CECA), which covers areas like trade and mobility.
Progress and key areas of negotiation
Apart from goods and services trade, the 11th round that began on August 18 in New Delhi, also discussed issues on digital trade and rules of origin. Legal and institutional provisions like environment, labour, and gender were also discueed, bringing greater understanding for convergence in the remaining provisions, a statement by ministry of commerce and industry said.
To maintain momentum and achieve convergence both partners will continue the negotiations in virtual intersessions.
Looking ahead, with shared ambition and mutual understanding to work towards a future ready framework, India and Australia remain strongly aligned to the early conclusion of a mutually beneficial CECA, the statement added.
From ECTA to CECA: The next frontier
As India steadily advances its footprint through multiple trade agreements, this round reflects a steadfast commitment to enhance economic partnerships anchored with national priorities and global aspirations, the ministry said.
The CECA builds on the Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) which was in nature during an early harvest deal, came into force in December 2022. The ECTA covered five subjects or policy areas. 14 more have been added to the CECA.
The CECA envisages deeper and comprehensive engagement on five issues — goods, services, digital trade, government procurement and rules of origin, that were agreed under ECTA.
New areas where either India or Australia have shown an interest in inclusion in CECA are competition policy, micro small and medium enterprises (MSME), innovation, agriculture technology, critical minerals and sports.
In talks significant progress has been made in rules of origin and digital trade. Convergence has also been visible in the areas of competition, innovation, labour, gender and environment tracks.