**India and Oman Review Progress on Free Trade Agreement**
New Delhi, Jan 27 – On Monday, the trade ministers of India and Oman convened to assess the progress of the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) between the two nations, with a focus on advancing negotiations for the pact. The discussions took place between India’s Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Oman’s Minister of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion, Qais bin Mohammed Al Yousef, in Muscat.
“Our discussions centered on propelling negotiations for the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), enhancing trade and investment relations, and identifying opportunities to further strengthen our bilateral partnership,” Goyal stated on X. He is currently in Muscat for the Joint Commission Meeting scheduled for January 28.
On January 14, India and Oman conducted the fifth round of talks regarding the agreement, which aims to enhance bilateral economic relations. The formal negotiations for the CEPA commenced in November 2023. Such agreements typically involve significant reductions or eliminations of customs duties on a wide range of traded goods, as well as the relaxation of regulations to facilitate trade in services and attract investments.
Oman ranks as India’s third-largest export destination among the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. India has already established a similar agreement with the UAE, another GCC member, which took effect in May 2022.
However, bilateral trade between India and Oman has seen a decline, dropping to USD 8.94 billion (with exports at USD 4.42 billion and imports at USD 4.5 billion) in 2023-24, down from USD 12.39 billion (exports of USD 4.47 billion and imports of USD 7.91 billion) in 2022-23. Key imports from Oman include petroleum products and urea, which together account for over 70% of total imports, along with other significant products such as propylene and ethylene polymers, pet coke, gypsum, chemicals, and iron and steel.
