Australia Sign Landmark Free Trade Agreement With India

Australia and India are signing a long-awaited free trade deal worth more than $12 billion per year, with Western Australian exports to benefit the most.

Tariffs will be slashed on more than 85% of Australian goods exported to India, including barley, sheep meat wine and more.

Coal will prove the key, given almost a quarter of India's total coal imports arrive from Australia.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said WA was a "key part of our new deal with India, delivering some of the greatest produce and resources in the world".

"With around 1.5 billion consumers in India, there are huge new opportunities for everyone, from the Western Rock Lobster fishers off the coast, to the winemakers in Margaret River," Morrison said.

"West Australian firms are also very well placed to meet the needs of India’s growing demand for mining equipment, technology and services, and there’s no doubt that Western Australia has the competitive edge in that field."

The "early harvest" agreement between the two nations is an all-embracing interim deal. 

Trade Minister Dan Tehan labelled the deal as "historic", securing ties with India and boosting trade stocks.

"Tariffs will be eliminated on more than 85 per cent of Australia's export goods to India and that will rise to almost 91 per cent over 10 years," he said.

"There is comprehensive agreement here with the world's fastest-growing major economy."

Major exports, including dairy and beef were excluded from the interim agreement due to political opposition in India.

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