Industry titans on landmark India-EU FTA

New Delhi, Jan 27 (PTI) Industry titans on the landmark India-EU FTA: *Mercedes-Benz India MD and CEO Santosh Iyer: “The FTA is also expected to strongly drive technological innovation and sustainable growth within the Indian automotive sector, with a sharp focus on future mobility…With more than 90 per cent of Mercedes-Benz India’s sales volume comprising ‘Made in India’ locally manufactured models, and only around 5 per cent of sales coming via CBU imports from the EU, we do not foresee any price reduction for Mercedes-Benz vehicles from the FTA, in the foreseeable future”.

*Anish Shah, Group CEO and MD, Mahindra Group: “We see a huge positive for the auto sector as it provides duty-free access to European markets and will attract European OEMs

to invest further in India. This agreement is very well designed, as it lowers in-quota duties only at higher-priced segments, which will enhance scale in the core segments relevant to Make in India for the world. We feel this will not change any competitive dynamics in the industry.” *Sunil Bharti Mittal, Founder and Chairman, Bharti Enterprises “I am confident that this FTA will open new avenues for collaboration, particularly in digital infrastructure, space connectivity, and secure networks, offering European investors a compelling opportunity to innovate and scale with India for global markets. This agreement also opens opportunities for Indian companies like Airtel to invest in the digital infrastructure in Europe.” *Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC) Chairman A Sakthivel “The zero-duty access of Indian garments and clothing to the EU market will decisively turn the tables in India’s favour, enhancing our competitiveness in the European market…With the elimination of tariffs on Indian apparel products, the Indian apparel industry gains immensely as it will get a level playing field vis-a-vis its competing countries like Bangladesh, Turkey and Vietnam, which enjoy duty-free/ preferential duty access in the EU’s market.” *Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI) Chairman Ashwin Chandran “Coming at a time when India’s textile and apparel sector continues to be weighed down by the steep US tariff, the announcement on the FTA with the EU comes as a huge confidence boost since it creates possibilities for increased market access and more business to flow in for India’s textile and apparel exporters from the 27-nation bloc.” *Nasscom: “Indian IT firms stand to gain from greater opportunities in Europe, including easier cross-border provision of services (Mode 1 under GATS) and potentially improved mobility for professionals (though Mode 4)…Given the geopolitical challenges, the FTA diversifies markets for Indian IT exporters, providing a hedge against global trade uncertainties.” *Shailesh Chandra, President, SIAM and MD & CEO, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles: “While we look forward to specific details of the India-EU FTA with respect to the auto industry, the calibrated approach to balance market access and domestic manufacturing should give us a win-win between increased global participation on one hand and growth of the domestic auto industry with investments and employment on the other hand. This will also enable increased choice for consumers in both regions.” *CII Director General Chandrajit Banerjee “The unprecedented preferential access secured for over 99 per cent of Indian exports is a game-changer for the Indian industry. It decisively improves competitiveness in the EU’s high-value market, anchors Indian manufacturers and service providers deeper into global value chains, and accelerates investment, technology inflows, and scale.” *FICCI President Anant Goenka said: “The European Union represents the most expansive and high-potential market covered under India’s recent FTA engagements, opening new avenues for deeper economic collaboration. The India-EU FTA is poised to unlock substantial untapped trade and investment opportunities, enabling deeper market access, stronger value-chain integration, and enhanced export competitiveness across manufacturing and high-value sectors.” *Pharmexcil Chairman Namit Joshi: “Near-zero tariff access significantly strengthens the position of Indian formulations, APIs, and value-added medicines in the EU, a development that is particularly consequential for India’s pharma MSMEs, many of whom possess strong quality capabilities, but face cost and access barriers in highly regulated markets.” PTI MBI BAL BAL