India and the United Kingdom on Monday held the 16th meeting of their Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) in New Delhi — the first since the bilateral free trade agreement took effect — with British companies announcing fresh commercial deals worth more than £1 billion.
The meeting was co-chaired by Union Minister Piyush Goyal and UK Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade Jonathan Reynolds. In a statement issued on Monday, the British High Commission in India said communities in both countries "are set to benefit from over £1 billion in new deals," timed with the arrival of a major UK business delegation aimed at maximising gains from the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), the landmark India-UK FTA.
Focus sectors and headline deals
Focus sectors for the new package include aviation services, artificial intelligence, healthcare, advanced communications and engineering. With Monday's announcements, deals worth nearly £12 billion have now been announced since the FTA was signed in July 2025, supporting thousands of jobs across both countries, the statement added.
Among the deals announced on Monday: a £50 million investment from Meta for Data Technologies (MFD) to fund AI research in the UK, and leading UK aviation services company Menzies Aviation seeking to generate over £600 million in revenue from an expanded footprint in India. The mission also includes British food and drink businesses, with UK ministers looking to convert the FTA's commitments into export gains for farmers and producers — Scottish businesses in particular see opportunities in products such as salmon and whisky.
Delegation and trade outlook
The UK delegation, comprising more than 100 businesses and seven mayors from northern England, is led by Reynolds alongside the Secretaries of State for Scotland and for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. The mission will visit Delhi and Mumbai to forge new partnerships and widen market access for British businesses.
The agreement entered into force three months ago and is expected to boost bilateral trade by £25.5 billion annually by 2040.
Speaking separately at The Dilli Dialogue, Goyal said European carmakers would increasingly prefer to manufacture in India, arguing that producing vehicles in Europe had become uncompetitive because of the region's regulations. In its free trade agreements, India has provided quota-based tariff concessions for automobiles to the UK and the EU.
Sources:
The Hindu BusinessLine — India-UK JETCO meet focuses on FTA gains as British firms announce £1 billion new deals
The meeting was co-chaired by Union Minister Piyush Goyal and UK Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade Jonathan Reynolds. In a statement issued on Monday, the British High Commission in India said communities in both countries "are set to benefit from over £1 billion in new deals," timed with the arrival of a major UK business delegation aimed at maximising gains from the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), the landmark India-UK FTA.
Focus sectors and headline deals
Focus sectors for the new package include aviation services, artificial intelligence, healthcare, advanced communications and engineering. With Monday's announcements, deals worth nearly £12 billion have now been announced since the FTA was signed in July 2025, supporting thousands of jobs across both countries, the statement added.
Among the deals announced on Monday: a £50 million investment from Meta for Data Technologies (MFD) to fund AI research in the UK, and leading UK aviation services company Menzies Aviation seeking to generate over £600 million in revenue from an expanded footprint in India. The mission also includes British food and drink businesses, with UK ministers looking to convert the FTA's commitments into export gains for farmers and producers — Scottish businesses in particular see opportunities in products such as salmon and whisky.
Delegation and trade outlook
The UK delegation, comprising more than 100 businesses and seven mayors from northern England, is led by Reynolds alongside the Secretaries of State for Scotland and for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. The mission will visit Delhi and Mumbai to forge new partnerships and widen market access for British businesses.
The agreement entered into force three months ago and is expected to boost bilateral trade by £25.5 billion annually by 2040.
Speaking separately at The Dilli Dialogue, Goyal said European carmakers would increasingly prefer to manufacture in India, arguing that producing vehicles in Europe had become uncompetitive because of the region's regulations. In its free trade agreements, India has provided quota-based tariff concessions for automobiles to the UK and the EU.
Sources:
The Hindu BusinessLine — India-UK JETCO meet focuses on FTA gains as British firms announce £1 billion new deals
