Australia Expects to Sign a CE­PA with India by the End of 2022

Australia expects to sign a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CEPA) with India by the end of the year. This includes digital trade agreements that further facilitate bilateral trade.

The outbreak of a global pandemic has affected Australia's investment in India to the extent that it is consistent with trends in other parts of Asia. However, Australia's total investment in 2020 was comparable to 2018 levels, with a 15.1% growth trend over the five years to 2019, the update said.

This report provides the Australian Government with a five-year action plan to accelerate economic integration between India and Australia. Energy, tourism, education, and health are some of the key sectors mentioned in the first document published in 2018, India's Economic Strategy by 2035.

The report was published weeks after India and Australia signed a free trade agreement known as the Economic Cooperation Trade Agreement (ECTA). Under the terms of the agreement, Canberra will provide tax-free access to the market for over 95% of its fare line. It takes about 4 months to implement the contract.

Australia is India's 17th largest trading partner and India is Australia's 9th largest trading partner in the current fiscal year. Bilateral trade in goods and services between the two countries is expected to grow from the current $27.5 billion to $45 billion over five years.