India's free trade agreement (FTA) with Oman is progressing at a fast pace and some "good news" may come "very soon" regarding the same, said Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal.
The talks for the agreement, called the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), began in November 2023. However, the negotiations received a much-needed impetus after the visit of Goyal to Muscat in January this year.
"I think you will see some good news very soon on the Oman FTA," Goyal told reporters in Paris. Goyal hinted that an FTA might come by this year. He is currently on an official visit to hold talks with French leaders and businesses to boost trade and investments. He will also attend a mini-ministerial meeting of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) tomorrow.
Taking about such agreements, the minister said these FTAs not just promote trade in goods and services, but also strengthen supply chain, bring confidence in businesses of both sides about stable polices, and predictability.
India-Oman Ties
Oman is the third-largest export destination among the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries for India. India already has a similar agreement with another GCC member UAE, which came into effect in May 2022.
While people-to-people contact between India and Oman can be traced back 5000 years, diplomatic relations were established in 1955, and the bilateral ties were upgraded to a Strategic Partnership in 2008. In FY25, New Delhi's bilateral trade was about $10.5bn with Muscat with exports at $4bn and imports stood at $6.54bn.
Main items of India’s exports to Oman include mineral fuels, mineral oils, inorganic chemicals, organic or inorganic compounds of precious metals, iron and steel. On the other hand, it mainly imports mineral fuels, mineral oils, fertilizers, ships, lime and cement, organic or inorganic compounds of precious metals.
Oman is India’s closest defence partner in the Gulf region and defence cooperation has emerged as a key pillar of the strategic partnership between both countries.
[With inputs from PTI]
