Follow Us
India and Australia are working on a bilateral investment treaty and upgrading their existing Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) into a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA), Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Friday.
The proposed CECA would provide a wider framework for expanding trade and investment ties, while the investment treaty would strengthen bilateral investment flows, the minister said.
Speaking at the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India’s first Oceania International Conference 2026 in Australia, Goyal said both sides were working towards a “balanced, fair and equitable” agreement and a “trusted partnership”.
India’s exports to Australia have nearly doubled since the ECTA came into force in December 2022, rising to $7.28 billion in 2025-26 from $4 billion in 2020-21. Total bilateral trade stood at $21.09 billion in 2025-26.
Goyal identified critical minerals, manufacturing and processing, renewable energy, technology, agritech and education as key areas for deeper cooperation.
He said that the ECTA has enabled deeper flows of trade both ways, greater investment on both sides and better availability of talent for innovation and growth, which has supported businesses in Australia and India.
“We have also sorted out the problem of cross-border taxation that several service providers, particularly the IT companies, were facing. We have also had greater engagement on respecting each other’s due diligence to try to reduce the compliance burden on businesses and citizens,” he added.
Goyal said Australia’s critical-mineral resources and India’s manufacturing and processing capabilities could create greater economic complementarity. He also called for stronger collaboration between the two countries in education and technology-enabled professional services.
The minister suggested that chartered accountants could play a bridging role between educational institutions and businesses in the two countries.
TOPICSaustraliaThis article was first uploaded on September twenty-six, twenty twenty-six, at fifty-five minutes past one in the night. © The Indian Express (P) Ltd