PM Modi invites Australian businesses to invest in India, seeks early conclusion of CECA
Australian businesses were invited to invest in India, with policy reforms and sustained economic growth cited as the basis for opportunity
Discussions covered collaboration in critical minerals, semiconductors, artificial intelligence, electric vehicles and defence supply chains
Early conclusion of the bilateral Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) was urged, building on the existing Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA)
An India-Australia Critical Minerals Corridor was announced to build a resilient supply chain and support the clean energy transition
The engagement took place around the Australia-India CEOs Forum and an Economic Roadmap business event in Melbourne
CECA vs CEPA vs FTA — Trade Agreement Typology
India's trade agreements fall on a spectrum of ambition. A Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) reduces tariffs only on a pre-agreed ("positive") list of tariff lines. A Free Trade Agreement (FTA) is broader, using a "negative list" approach so duties are eliminated on most goods except those explicitly excluded, but it is largely goods-focused. A Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) or Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) goes further still — an integrated package covering goods, services, investment, trade facilitation, intellectual property, government procurement and technical standards, often including mutual recognition agreements (MRAs) on regulatory regimes.
Key Details
- India uses "CEPA" for its deepest agreements (e.g., India-UAE CEPA, 2022) and "CECA" for a similarly comprehensive but sometimes narrower-scoped pact; there is no single fixed legal distinction between the two terms in India's practice
- The India-Australia Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) was signed on 2 April 2022 and entered into force on 29 December 2022 — India's first FTA with a developed economy in over a decade
- Under ECTA, about 90% of Australia's goods exports to India (by value) became tariff-free, while 100% of India's exports to Australia received zero-tariff access
- CECA negotiations (a deeper follow-on to ECTA) began in 2011, stalled in 2016, resumed in 2021, and have completed multiple negotiating rounds, with a joint stocktake held in December 2024
The push for "early conclusion of CECA" refers to upgrading the existing goods-heavy ECTA into a comprehensive agreement covering services, investment and regulatory cooperation — the same graduation pattern seen in India's other CEPA-track partners (UAE, Australia, EU negotiations).
WTO Framework — GATT Article XXIV and the MFN Exception
The Most-Favoured-Nation (MFN) principle under the WTO requires members not to discriminate between trading partners — a tariff concession given to one member must be extended to all. GATT Article XXIV creates a carve-out from MFN, permitting Free Trade Areas and Customs Unions provided duties are eliminated on "substantially all" trade between the parties and external tariffs on non-members are not raised.
Key Details
- Article XXIV requirements: elimination of duties on substantially all trade; no increase in barriers against non-parties; interim agreements must have a defined implementation schedule
- Bilateral FTAs/CECAs like India-Australia are notified to the WTO under this provision
- India is a founding WTO member (1995, successor to GATT 1947)
Any India-Australia CECA, once concluded, would be notified as a regional trade agreement under GATT Article XXIV, legally justifying preferential tariffs that would otherwise violate MFN obligations toward other WTO members.
National Critical Mineral Mission and the India-Australia Critical Minerals Corridor
The National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM), launched by the Government of India in January 2025, aims to secure supply chains for minerals essential to clean energy, electronics and defence technologies. It has an outlay of about ₹34,300 crore over FY 2024-25 to FY 2030-31.
Key Details
- NCMM targets include 1,200 domestic exploration projects by 2030-31 and domestic production of at least 15 critical minerals (e.g., lithium, graphite, potash, rare earths)
- It also envisages Indian public/private entities acquiring critical mineral assets abroad, including through KABIL (Khanij Bidesh India Ltd.)
- India and Australia had earlier set up an India-Australia Critical Minerals Research Partnership (2024, AUD 12.2 million) and a Critical Minerals Investment Partnership focused on lithium and cobalt
- Australia holds large reserves of lithium, rare earths and other strategic minerals central to EV batteries and semiconductor supply chains
The newly announced India-Australia Critical Minerals Corridor extends this existing cooperation into a dedicated bilateral supply-chain mechanism, aligning with NCMM's goal of reducing India's import dependence on minerals used in EVs, batteries and clean-energy manufacturing.
- ECTA signed: 2 April 2022; entered into force: 29 December 2022
- Under ECTA: ~90% of Australian goods exports to India tariff-free; 100% of Indian exports to Australia tariff-free
- Australia is cited as India's 14th-largest trading partner; bilateral trade in goods and services valued at approximately USD 24.1 billion in 2025-26
- Target for bilateral trade under the broader partnership: AUD 100 billion by 2030
- National Critical Mineral Mission outlay: ~₹34,300 crore (FY 2024-25 to FY 2030-31); target of domestic production of at least 15 critical minerals
- CECA negotiations began 2011; resumed 2021 after a 2016 stall; multiple rounds completed with a December 2024 joint stocktake