LONDON — The U.K. and India have wrapped up the latest round of talks in London without clinching a long-coveted trade deal.
India’s top trade negotiator, Piyush Goyal, returned to the U.K. on Friday for unscheduled negotiations in an attempt to conclude the talks.
The U.K. government said the two sides had held constructive discussions this week after negotiators tried to push the deal over the finish line following three years of talks.
Ministers see securing a free trade agreement with India, as well as a separate bilateral investment treaty, as a key economic priority.
A spokesperson for the U.K. Department for Business and Trade said on Saturday: “We have been clear we will only sign a deal that is fair, balanced and ultimately in the best interests of the British people.”
“We are determined to improve access for U.K. businesses, ensure their fair treatment, cut tariffs, and make trade cheaper and easier,” the spokesperson added.
Goyal returned after visiting Oslo and Brussels following a two-day negotiating sprint with U.K. Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds in London at the start of this week.
There are “just a couple of issues left to resolve,” said a person briefed on the talks by Goyal. Nevertheless, it “appears like most of [the deal] has been resolved and it is likely there might be something announced soon,” they said.
Goyal’s mid-week visits to Norway and the European Commission were focused on carving out exemptions for India’s high-emission commodities like steel and cement from new European carbon border tax regimes.
India’s trade chief has also pushed for carve-outs from the U.K.’s forthcoming carbon border tax, which is due to come into effect in 2027.
The U.K. and EU both argue that providing safeguards from these carbon taxes through a trade deal would breach the WTO’s Most Favored Nation rule, which requires all trade partners to be treated equally.
“This government is committed to doing the right deal with India on trade and investment that delivers our Plan for Change,” said the Department for Business and Trade spokesperson.
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