ACCA welcomes beginning of UK-India trade talks

Helen Brand

International trade secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan met with her counterpart, Indian minister of commerce and industry Piyush Goyal, to formally start talks on a free trade agreement which the UK government believes could be worth up to £28 billion a year by 2035.

Helen Brand, chief executive of ACCA UK, said: “While outcomes from these negotiations will of course take time, this is a positive move towards modernising our trading relationship with India as a growing and dynamic economy.

“It is also interesting to note that these negotiations with India are also intended to open up more opportunities across South Asia where many of our members work and where accountancy is essential for economies to flourish.”

ACCA believes that a free trade deal with India will help boost trade by reducing tariffs and other barriers, having a major impact on the advice and support ACCA members provide to businesses across all sectors.

It also says that the success of the deal will depend on artificial barriers to trade being lifted, which is a clear aim of the negotiations. ACCA will be monitoring the progress closely and feeding back views as and when appropriate.