India and Qatar gear up for free trade agreement negotiations

Doha: Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has announced that India and Qatar will soon begin negotiations for a free trade agreement (FTA), with the goal of concluding the talks by the third quarter of next year.

"My Qatar counterpart (Sheikh Faisal bin Thani bin Faisal Al Thani) and I discussed today the broad contours of the terms of reference for the negotiations. We will soon launch the negotiations and hope to conclude them by the third quarter of next year, if not earlier," Goyal told reporters in Doha.

Responding to a question on whether India had accelerated trade talks with Qatar and other nations in reaction to the recent 50% US tariff, Goyal categorically denied the suggestion. He emphasised that New Delhi does not view its partnerships with one country through the prism of developments with another. "Qatar is, on its own, a trusted ally of India. We are setting a target to double our bilateral trade ($14.2 billion in FY25) by 2030," he said, adding that India is simultaneously pursuing FTA negotiations with several countries, including the US, EU, Oman, Chile, Peru, and New Zealand, among others.


When asked how India stands to gain from an FTA with Qatar, given that its $12.5 billion worth of imports in FY25 are heavily dominated by energy supplies and unlikely to change significantly in the coming days, the minister emphasized that the true promise of the agreement extends well beyond trade in products.

He highlighted opportunities for deeper cooperation in sectors such as agriculture and food products, renewable energy, data centres, artificial intelligence, and tourism.

Additionally, he said that the pact is expected to stimulate trade in emerging sectors such as cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, helping to lay the foundation for a more diversified and balanced economic partnership between the two nations.

Earlier in the day, Satnam Arora, joint managing director of Kohinoor Foods Ltd, told ET that the proposed FTA would "serve as oxygen" for the overall business climate, even though it may not directly benefit all exporters, since several Indian products, including basmati rice, already enjoy zero import duty in Qatar.

"If India signs an FTA with Qatar, the Indian services sector stands to benefit substantially, gaining a stronger foothold and tapping into the Qatari market more effectively," he added.

(The reporter is in Doha at the invitation of Ficci)