Indian, UK trade ministers meet to push for deal under added pressure from Trump

By Alistair Smout

LONDON (Reuters) -The British and Indian trade ministers began two days of talks on Monday to conclude more than three years of negotiations on a trade pact, under additional pressure to reach a deal because of Donald Trump's tariffs on exports to the United States.

Indian Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal described his first day of talks in with British trade minister Jonathan Reynolds as "productive" in a post on X, without giving further details.

India and Britain are both seeking bilateral deals with the United States to remove some of Trump's tariffs, which have upended the global trade system. The turmoil has also sharpened focus in both London and New Delhi on the need to clinch a UK/India trade deal.

"The government's committed to doing the right deal with India, which will improve access for UK businesses, cut tariffs and make trade cheaper and easier," British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's spokesperson said.

Talks are seen as nearing completion, with the latest negotiating round having been extended in a bid to reach a final conclusion. Any deal must reach agreement over tariffs on goods such as whiskey, agriculture and cars, as well as on regulations around pharmaceutical products and investments.

One person familiar with the talks said before Monday's meeting that the issues of whiskey and autos, long sensitive areas in India, had already been resolved.

Another area of contention has been around any exemptions Indian workers could secure from British social security contributions, which Goyal has said will be covered in a separate treaty.

Britain and India launched the trade talks in January 2022, with then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson promising a deal by Diwali ten months later to show the advantages of Britain's new authority to conduct its own trade policy after leaving the EU.

But progress has proven uneven, with Starmer now the fourth British prime minister leading the negotiations. His Labour government has pledged progress towards a deal, and Reynolds, who visited India in February to restart the trade talks, said securing one was a "top priority".

Both sides said that immigration, a politically sensitive topic in Britain, would not form part of trade talks, although provisions to make it easier for professionals to stay temporarily for work trips could be part of any deal.

(Reporting by Alistair Smout and Elizabeth Piper and Shivangi Acharya in New DelhiEditing by Sarah Young and Peter Graff)