Everything You Need to Know About India-Australia ECTA

Our today's edition of Current Affairs is here. Read to know more about India-Australia ECTA. Also, find the topic's relevance to the UPSC CSE syllabus below:

For Prelims: Current events of National and International Importance

Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement, UNCLOS.

For Mains: GS-II International Treaties & Agreements, Groupings & Agreements Involving India and/or Affecting India's Interests.

GS-III,  Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement, Free Trade Agreement and its Significance.

Free Trade Agreement, CEPA, CECA, Supply Chain Resilience Initiative, QUAD.

Context

Recently, the Australian Parliament approved the India-Australia Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA).

Probable Question 

With the approval of Ind-Aus ECTA from Australia, do you think that India is fully integrated with the global supply chain? (10 Marks, 150 Words)

About Ind-Aus ECTA

• It is India's first Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with a significantly developed nation in more than ten years.
• The Agreement covers cooperation in the following areas across the whole spectrum of bilateral economic and commercial ties between the two friendly nations:
  • Trade in Goods, Rules of Origin
  • Exchange of Services
  • Technical Trade Barriers (TBT)
  • SPS (sanitary and phytosanitary) precautions
  • Settlement of Disputes, Movement of Natural Persons
  • Procedures for Telecom and Customs
  • Pharmaceuticals and other areas of cooperation
• A formal framework for promoting and enhancing trade between the two nations is provided by ECTA.
• Nearly all of the tariff lines that India and Australia deal in, are covered by the ECTA.
• India will profit from Australia's offer of preferential market access on all of its tariff lines.
• This comprises all the labor-intensive export industries that India is interested in, such as textiles, leather goods, footwear, furniture, gems, and jewelry.
• On the other hand, India will grant Australia preferential access to more than 70% of its tariff lines, including those that are relevant to Australia's export interests and are principally for the importation of raw materials and intermediaries like coal, mineral ores, and wine.
• Indian STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) graduates will be eligible for extended post-study work visas under the terms of the agreement.
  • Additionally, Australia will establish a scheme to issue visas to young Indians desiring to take working holidays there.
• A limit of 1800 visas will be issued each year to Indian chefs and yoga instructors.
• Additionally, it is predicted that ECTA will result in the creation of 10 lakh new jobs.

Also Read: India-Australia Critical Minerals Investment Partnership

 The India- Australia Relations

• Excellent bilateral ties exist between Australia and India, which have recently experienced a transformational evolution and are progressing well towards becoming a cordial friendship.
• This unique cooperation is characterized by common principles of liberal parliamentary democracies, Commonwealth traditions, growing economic participation, long-standing inter-ethnic ties, and rising high-level interaction.
• The cornerstone of the complex bilateral relations between India and Australia is the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, which was launched during the Leaders' Virtual Summit in June 2020.
• A fast broadening and strengthening bilateral relationship between India and Australia is strengthened and stabilized by expanding economic and commercial ties between the two nations.
• Australia and India have both been significant trading partners for one another.
  • India's 17th largest trading partner is Australia, while Australia's 9th largest trading partner is India.
  • In 2021, the bilateral commerce between India and Australia would be worth USD 27.5 billion in goods and services.
  • India's exports of goods to Australia increased by 135 percent between 2019 and 2021. India exported USD 6.9 billion worth of goods in 2021, the majority of which were finished goods from a diverse range of industries.
  • In 2021, India imported commodities worth USD 15.1 billion from Australia, primarily in the form of raw materials, minerals, and intermediate products.
  • The trilateral Supply Chain Resilience Initiative (SCRI), which aims to improve the resilience of supply networks in the Indo-Pacific Region, includes Japan, India, and Australia as partners.

Way Forward

• The India-Australia ECTA will greatly increase two-way trade in goods and services, produce new jobs, boost living standards, and generally promote the welfare of the two countries. Additionally, it will strengthen the two countries' already solid, strategic, and deep partnerships.
• India and Australia share the belief that the Indo-Pacific area should be free, open, inclusive, and controlled by laws. All parties shall abide by international law, especially the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea(UNCLOS), and disputes should be resolved peacefully rather than via the use of force or unilateral action 

News Source: The Hindu.

https://www.thehindu.com/business/Economy/economic-cooperation-and-trade-agreement-with-australia-will-significantly-open-up-opportunities-for-indian-businesses-piyush-goyal/article66169130.ece

Also watch: 

https://youtu.be/rSlcadZ6A4Y

If you want to enhance your civils preparation and crack the UPSC CSE examination, download the PrepLadder app and get access to the finest study material curated by India’s top UPSC faculty.

You can also join our Telegram channel for UPSC coaching and to stay updated with the latest information about the UPSC exam.