The India-UK free trade agreement (FTA) signed last year will be implemented with effect from July 15, 2026, despite differences over the steel tariff proposed by the UK government, officials of the two countries said on Thursday, June 18.
The two countries have agreed to move ahead with implementation of the trade deal after British Prime Minister Keir Starmer held talks with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi at the G7 leaders’ summit in France, the officials said.
India had earlier raised the prospect of reopening or delaying the application of the FTA, worth $6.5 billion in bilateral trade signed last year, over concerns about the impact of new UK steel trade measures due to come into effect on July 1, 2026.
“Demonstrating the collaborative strengths of the India-UK trade pact, both countries have reached a landmark consensus on safeguards and promote bilateral trade in steel,” a joint statement of the two countries said. However, no information was available whether tariff quotas proposed by the UK government would be relaxed for Indian steel imports into the country.
However, sources in the Indian government said that Indian steel companies could be set to gain some protection from UK’s import safeguards coming into effect from July 1. The sources said that the final agreement is likely to see about 85 percent of Indian steel exports outside the safeguard measures, while Indian steel will be further protected by residual quotas and an authorized use scheme (AUS).