“India EU free trade agreement legal scrub should be over in another week or two,” he said, adding that it will be operationalised few months after operationalisation of India-UK trade agreement, which is coming into force July 15.
“All the members are completely aligned in this partnership with India. There is dissent or dissatisfaction back in India also,” he said. India and Europe collectively represent about 30% of global economy and trade.
On India-Spain trade, Goyal said there is huge potential to boost the current bilateral trade, which is less than $10 billion.
“Can we look at increasing bilateral trade between Spain and India 10X in the next 10 years. Can we look at an increase in tourists both sides 10X in the next 10 years. Can we imagine increasing investments 10X in the next 10 years,” he said and suggested making an actionable plan on achieving these targets.
Areas where both sides can increase collaborations include education, and tourism. There are about 300 Spanish companies in India while about 100 Indian firms have a presence in Spain.
Goyal said that India and Spain should invest more deeply in each other’s people and businesses, leverage the opportunities opened up by the India-EU FTA for both countries, and seriously focus on connecting tourism and talent.