India's Trade Strategy: Why Goyal Says No Deals Under Pressure

He said India is exploring new markets and looking at "stronger demand impetus" within the country.

Speaking at the Berlin Global Dialogue on Friday, the Minister emphasised that India views trade agreements as an opportunity to build deeper trust and partnerships.

"India never thinks decisions in a rush or on the pressure of the moment, and we've accepted that there are tariffs on us, we're looking at how to overcome that. We're looking at newer markets. We are looking at a stronger demand impetus within the Indian economy," the Minister said during a panel discussion, referring to the tariffs imposed by the US.

Talking about the bilateral trade deal (BTA) between India and the US, the Minister stated that talks are going on, but India is not in a hurry to finalise the BTA under any pressure.

"We are talking to the US, but we don't do deals in a hurry," he said, adding that India doesn't do deals with deadlines or with a "gun on our head."

Earlier, in an interaction with DD, Goyal highlighted that India and the US are engaged in talks, with teams working together, and that the Commerce Secretary met US counterparts to push talks toward a fair and equitable trade deal.

Talking about the intent behind the trade deals, he added, "Trade deals are for a longer duration. Trade deals are not only about tariffs; it's not only about access to goods or services; it's also about trust, it's also about relationships. It's a demonstration to businesses that you can work between both countries and trust businesses to prosper, businesses to be protected, businesses to get opportunities and a fair deal."

Speaking about the advantages due to the active workforce, Goyal said, "We have a demographic dividend, our average age is only 28 and years, which you won't find in many other parts of the world except of course Africa. Now that young person now connected with the internet, and we have a billion internet users, very aspirational. That aspiration is driving him to work harder, is driving him to adopt new technologies, new languages, new countries. I think one must also recognise India's economy, while it may seem it's only a USD 4 trillion economy, on a purchasing power parity is already at USD 15 trillion."

India is also actively pursuing FTAs with the EU, New Zealand, and other countries, while having already signed agreements with the UAE, Australia, and the UK.

- ANI