India–UK Free Trade Agreement Signed at Breakneck Speed, Unlocking £25 Billion Two-Way Pipeline

New Delhi and London cemented the long-awaited bilateral free-trade accord at 09:17 IST today, slashing 92 % of tariffs on Indian textiles, leather, jewellery and marine products while granting zero-duty access to 8,500 UK automotive, whisky and pharmaceutical lines within five staggered years. The deal—initialled by Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and UK Secretary of State for Business Jonathan Reynolds on a live video bridge from Hyderabad House—also creates an unprecedented “Data Bridge” clause allowing certified Indian IT firms to process NHS health data within Indian shores under UK GDPR-equivalent standards. Industry captains expect the pact to lift bilateral trade from last year’s £38 billion to £63 billion by FY28, with CII estimating new Indian service exports alone worth $7.4 billion annually. Equity desks have already marked up Tata Consumer, Dixon Technologies and United Spirits by 4-7 % on volume spikes, while the rupee firmed 14 paisa to 83.04 to the dollar on anticipated capital inflows.

The accord quietly resolves the contentious Scotch whisky tariff tiff—India will bring the 150 % duty down to 50 % immediately and to zero in year three—while the UK concedes a 25-year phase-out for British car import tariffs, protecting Jaguar Land Rover’s Indian assembly ecosystem. A newly formed “Green Corridor” joint fund will deploy £1.2 billion from both sides for battery-storage, green-hydrogen and small-modular-reactor pilots, positioning India as a net exporter of green know-how rather than a mere consumer. Crucially, the deal unlocks 42,000 skilled visas annually for Indian professionals under a fast-track route, a move Infosys and Wipro say will shave 18 % off onsite deployment costs. With both Parliaments expected to ratify by October, negotiators are already eyeing a services-plus chapter covering AI governance, fintech passporting and mutual recognition of chartered-accountancy degrees.

Early supply-chain signals are dramatic. APSEZ stock jumped 6 % after the company secured exclusive rights to operate a new roll-on/roll-off terminal at Tilbury to handle UK-bound auto exports, while Britannia Industries has begun scouting West Midlands locations for a biscuit plant aimed at duty-free entry into the EU via the UK’s origin-cumulation clause. Rating agency Crisil calculates the deal could add 34 basis points to India’s GDP growth in FY26 through trade creation alone, provided non-tariff barriers on medical devices are ironed out in the upcoming technical working group. Investors will parse the first quarterly export numbers in November to judge whether today’s euphoria translates into durable competitiveness or merely a sugar rush.