India’s FTA with Europe to begin from October 1: Piyush Goyal

India’s Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), finalised in March 2024, will officially come into effect from October 1, Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal announced on Monday.The EFTA bloc comprises Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Iceland. Addressing the valedictory session of the UP International Trade Show, Goyal said the deal would boost India’s trade partnerships and create new opportunities across sectors. “From the first of next month, a group of four countries—Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Iceland—will also come into effect,” he said.

#WATCH | Greater Noida, UP | "Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the EFTA countries (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland), which was finalised in March 2024, will come into effect from October 1, 2025," says Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, Piyush Goyal, while… pic.twitter.com/NcPamFN0ar

— ANI (@ANI) September 29, 2025

The minister highlighted that India is simultaneously negotiating trade agreements with 27 countries, including the United States, the European Union, and Peru, while the terms of reference for a pact with Eurasia have already been finalised. He recalled that India has already signed FTAs with the UAE, Australia, and the United Kingdom. “Countries around the world, including developed nations, are eager to sign free trade agreements with India,” Goyal added.
India’s Economic Transformation Since 2014
Pointing to India’s economic progress, Goyal noted that foreign exchange reserves now stand at USD 700 billion, nearly three times higher than in 2014. He expressed confidence that India will become the world’s third-largest economy—worth USD 5 trillion—within the next two years.He further added, India’s GDP grew 7.8 percent in the last quarter, while inflation fell to 2 percent, the lowest since independence. He underlined that banks are stronger, lending capacity has improved, and interest rates have eased. “In the last ten years under Prime Minister Modi, India has seen the lowest average inflation,” he said.Recalling India’s journey from being counted among the “Fragile Five” economies, Goyal credited the transformation to transparency and reforms introduced since 2014. “Earlier, government resources like 2G spectrum, coal mines, iron ore mines, contracts, used to be handed over to relatives, associates, or party members. Modi ji ensured that everything is now given only through transparent auctions,” he stated.
The minister also praised Uttar Pradesh’s rapid economic progress, describing it as “Unstoppable Uttar Pradesh.” He said the state has reached “new heights” in the past eight years and is now on a fast-paced growth trajectory.Referring to recent tax reforms, Goyal said the “GST Bachhat Utsav,” which has lowered the cost of many daily-use items, is a “gift from Prime Minister Modi ji to all of us during this Navratri.”

(Business Correspondent)