India–European Union Free Trade Agreement

A strategic turning point for the France–India economic corridor

After twenty years of negotiations, India and the European Union have concluded a landmark free trade agreement, creating an economic zone covering nearly 2 billion people and around 25% of global GDP. This agreement marks a historic shift in the scale and depth of economic relations between Europe and India.

In a global geopolitical context marked by trade tensions and strategic realignments, the agreement aims to rebalance dependencies, strengthen economic resilience and position India and Europe as key partners alongside the United States and China.

What changes in concrete terms

The agreement provides for a major reduction in tariffs, notably:

• European-made vehicles: from 110% to 10%,

• Wines and spirits: from 150% to 20%,

• Processed agri-food products (pasta, chocolate): full tariff elimination,

• Preferential access for more than 99% of Indian exports to the EU.

For the European Union, this represents estimated savings of up to €4 billion per year in customs duties and unprecedented access to the traditionally protected Indian market. For India, the agreement opens the door to a significant increase in exports across industrial goods, textiles, services and high value-added sectors.

An agreement beyond trade

Beyond trade liberalisation, the partnership extends to:

• defence and security cooperation,

• technological collaboration,

• talent mobility (skilled professionals, researchers, students),

• reduced strategic dependencies in an increasingly fragmented global economy.

EU–India trade already reached €180 billion in 2024 (goods and services), up nearly 90% over the past decade. India’s economy is growing at over 8%, and the country is expected to become the world’s third-largest economy before 2030.

Strategic implications for France

For French companies, this agreement:

• enhances the attractiveness of the Indian market,

• facilitates access to key sectors (industry, energy, mobility, technology, agri-food, services),

• provides a clearer framework for investment and partnerships,

• accelerates the need for structured market-entry and expansion strategies.

With strong industrial champions, advanced technological expertise and proven project engineering capabilities, France is particularly well positioned to benefit from this new framework.

FIBC perspective – What this means

This agreement confirms a clear structural trend:

the Europe–India corridor is becoming one of the major economic axes of the coming decade.

In this context, structuring exchanges, understanding regulatory frameworks, securing investments and enabling high-quality connections between public and private stakeholders are becoming critical success factors.

This is precisely where the France–India Business Council positions itself:

to provide strategic insight, facilitate meaningful connections and help transform market opening into concrete, sustainable projects.