New Zealand-India FTA Signed: Major Tariff Cuts Boost Exports and Trade

Legal verification of the New Zealand-India Free Trade Agreement (FTA) has been completed with both countries agreeing its signing on 27 April in New Delhi in front of a large contingent of Indian and New Zealand businesses, Trade and Investment Minister Todd McClay says.This once-in-a-generation agreement gives our exporters unprecedented access to 1.4 billion people and an economy set to become the third-largest in the world, Mr McClay says.With so much global unrest, a trade agreement with India has never been more important for New Zealand’s prosperity.Signing the FTA allows New Zealand to initiate a formal parliamentary treaty examination and means the public can scrutinise the agreement in full.Signature also ensures we remain on track to benefit from a Most Favoured Nation clause for wine and services exports. The European Union has secured better access for wine and services which will automatically be extended to our exporters if our agreement enters into force first. This will be worth tens of millions of dollars in extra exports for the New Zealand economy, Mr McClay says.The historic agreement was concluded in December and eliminates or reduces tariffs on 95 per cent of New Zealand’s exports – among the highest of any Indian FTA. Almost 57 per cent of our exports will be duty-free from day one including lamb, wool, coal, leather, most forestry and industrial products. This will increase to 82 per cent when fully implemented including infant formula, a kiwifruit quota almost four times our current exports and seafood. The remaining 13 per cent including kiwifruit, apples, mānuka honey, wine and some dairy is subject to sharp tariff cuts.Mr McClay confirmed the Government will follow the established parliamentary treaty examination process for the India FTA, allowing all parties to continue considering their support as the public also scrutinises the agreement.Signing will activate the standard parliamentary process, allowing Parliament and the public to scrutinise the agreement through the Select Committee. The FTA text and National lnterest Analysis will be tabled in Parliament the day after signing and referred to the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee (FADTC).Once FADTC has completed its examination, enabling legislation will be introduced and will follow the usual legislative process. This approach is consistent with that taken for the TPP, CPTPP, and agreements with the United Kingdom, European Union, and United Arab Emirates.The business community, the primary sector, the services sector and many New Zealanders have expressed their strong support for this important trade agreement, Mr McClay says.The benefits of the New Zealand-India FTA will be available to all Kiwis for many generations to come.Note to editor:Key outcomes for New Zealand include:   •    Tariff elimination or reduction on 95 per cent of our exports.•    Duty-free access on almost 57 per cent of New Zealand’s exports from day one, increasing to 82 per cent when fully implemented, with the remaining 13 per cent being subject to sharp tariff cuts.•    Immediate tariff elimination on sheep meat, wool, coal and over 95 per cent of forestry and wood exports.•    Duty-free access on most seafood exports, including mussels and salmon, over seven years. •    Duty-free access on most iron, steel and scrap aluminium, over 10 years or less. •    Duty-free access for most industrial products, over five to 10 years •    50 per cent tariff cut for large quota of apples – nearly double recent average exports.•    Duty-free access for kiwifruit within a quota almost four times our recent average exports, and tariff halved for exports outside of quota. •    Duty-free access for cherries, avocados, persimmons and blueberries, over 10 years. •    Tariffs on wine reduced from 150 per cent to either 25 or 50 per cent (depending on the value of the wine) over 10 years plus a Most Favoured Nation (MFN) commitment. •    Tariffs on mānuka honey cut from 66 per cent to 16.5 per cent over five years. •    MFN status and liberalisation across services exports. •    Duty-free access for dairy and other food ingredients for re-export from day one. •    Duty-free access for bulk infant formula and other high-value dairy preparations over seven years.•    50 percent tariff cut for high value milk albumins within a NZ-specific quota equal to current export volumes.