Eight FTAs finalised in last few years, covering 37 developed countries: Goyal

New Delhi: India has finalised eight free trade agreements (FTAs), covering 37 developed countries in the last few years, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has said.

He also said that India is in active dialogue for similar pacts with several countries, including Chile, Peru and Canada.

Trade negotiations with Chile, he said, are almost at conclusion, where India has interests in critical minerals.

“We’ve done eight free trade agreements covering 37 developed countries in the last few years under the Modi-government,” the minister told PTI.

Since 2014, India has finalised eight trade pacts — Mauritius (April 2021 implemented), Australia (December 2022 implemented), UAE (May 2022 implemented), Oman (signed in December 2025), UK (signed in July 2025), EFTA (implemented in October 2025 – Switzerland, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway), New Zealand (talks concluded in December 2025), and the European Union (27-nation bloc).

Goyal added that talks for a trade pact have started with the Mercosur group of countries to expand the existing PTA (preferential trade agreement).

The Mercosur trade bloc members are Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay.

The GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council), a group of six nations from the Middle Eastern region, too, has expressed a desire to start and launch negotiations for an FTA with India, theminister said.

“We have finalized terms of reference with them,” he said, adding that Canada and India are actively talking for a pact.

“We’re going to quickly start negotiations with Canada,” Goyal said.

India and SACU, the South African-led union, are also considering whether the two sides can look for a trade deal, he added.

“So a lot of potential trade deals on the anvil. We’ll certainly be hearing many more good news stories and making India an international player, a global player of significance in the years to come,” he said.

Under trade pacts, two or more nations either eliminate or reduce import duties on the maximum number of goods traded between them. They also ease norms to promote trade in services and attract investments.