Key Summary
- India’s pharma shipments to the UK reached £672.44 million in FY25, up from £584 million in FY24.
- Indian companies see improved access to the UK market for medicines, injectables, bulk drugs, and medical devices.
- 90 per cent of UK goods entering India will either be duty-free or attract reduced tariffs.
The India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) came into force on Wednesday (15) paving the way for increased economic ties between the two countries, including the pharmaceutical sector.
Starting Wednesday (15), 99 per cent of Indian goods entering the UK and 90 per cent of UK goods entering India will either be duty-free or attract reduced tariffs.
The agreement lowers tariffs across a range of sectors, including pharmaceuticals, textiles, leather, gems and jewellery, engineering goods, marine products, and processed food.
Signed in July last year after three years of negotiations, the trade deal is expected to at least double bilateral trade from the current level by 2030, while boosting long-term economic growth in both countries.
Pharmaceutical ties
The agreement is expected to improve market access for Indian pharmaceutical products and create new opportunities for exporters in the UK market.
While the UK accounts for nearly 3 percent of India’s pharma exports, industry leaders expect the India-UK FTA to increase that number.
According to Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council of India (Pharmexcil) data, India’s pharma shipments to the UK reached £672.44 million in FY25, up from £584 million in FY24.
Indian companies expect that CETA would improve their access to the UK market for medicines, injectables, bulk drugs, and medical devices by reducing trade barriers and simplifying trade procedures.
They added that it would help diversify global supply chains while strengthening India’s position as a reliable manufacturing hub for pharmaceuticals and healthcare products.
Pharmexcil had recently urged exporters to submit details of potential export consignments that are expected to benefit under the agreement so they can be flagged off on the day the agreement takes effect.
To ensure smooth implementation of the agreement, pharmaceutical exporters have to furnish information on export consignments that are likely to be shipped under the CETA framework.
Indian companies recently told Economic Times that CETA would improve their access to the UK market for medicines, injectables, bulk drugs, and medical devices by reducing trade barriers and simplifying trade procedures.
They added that it would help diversify global supply chains while strengthening India’s position as a reliable manufacturing hub for pharmaceuticals and healthcare products.
'Gold standard'
The British High Commissioner to India, Lindy Cameron, termed the agreement as a "new gold standard" for global trade deals.
CETA assumes greater significance as it came amid a fractured global trade environment largely triggered by US president Donald Trump's policies on trade and the lingering conflict in the Middle East.
To celebrate the coming into force of the trade pact, a special package of select British goods arrived at the British mission in Mumbai this morning aboard a British Airways flight.
The package contained goods from the UK benefiting from reduced tariffs, including cosmetics, food products and alcoholic beverages.
