As India-Australia fans brace up for the fourth test match of the Border-Gavaskar trophy, business communities from both the countries have also got reasons to be excited as the Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visits India. The 4-day visit is aimed at diversifying trade and foreign investment partners.

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During this tour, the meeting of the Australia-India CEO Forum — the first in the last five years — will be held. It will focus on removing trade barriers between the countries. The discussion will also be held to fortify Australia India Economic Cooperation & Trade Agreement (ECTA), which removed tariffs on 96 percent of the Indian exports to Australia and 85 percent of Australia’s exports to India.

According to Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), the country's two-way goods and services trade with India was at $34.3 billion in 2021. In the same year, Australia’s stock of investment in India was at $19.9 billion and India’s total investment in Australia was at $27.8 billion.

The bilateral trade will cross $70 billion in the next five years, estimates Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), considering the trade relations between the countries. “India and Australia do not compete in the same sectors and need each other’s products and services”, wrote Ajay Srivastava, Co-Founder, Global Trade Research Initiative, in his brief on ECTA.

Also Read: Australian PM Anthony Albanese arrives in Ahmedabad, Gujarat on state visit

Though India’s exports are diversified, 95 percent of the imports by India from Australia are raw materials and mining products needed by the industry. During this visit, India is likely to make a significant investment in the rare earth sector in Australia.

“Education is Australia's largest service export to India, valued at $4.2 billion in 2021. As of October 2022, almost 57,000 Indian visa holders were studying in Australia,” stated DFAT. India is also one of the largest sources of skilled labours for Australia.

Post-pandemic, the significantly slowed visa process for Indian students and the workforces is one of the prominent issues discussed by the countries. Nearly four lakh visa applications were pending in 2022.

Current geopolitical situation and mutual animosity towards China has brought India and Australia closer. International forums such as the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QUAD) have strengthened the partnership further. In 2020, India invited Australia to join Malabar naval exercise. The former has also been positive towards the AUKUS partnership. In the future as well, defence cooperation between the countries and investment from the both sides is expected.

To sum it up, as the first ball of the fourth test gets bowled, Modi and Albanese will be all set to hit sixes in different sectors to enhance the India-Australia relationship!

Also Read: PM Modi and Australian PM Anthony Albanese will watch the day 1 of 4th Test match in Ahmedabad

First Published:Mar 8, 2023 8:46 PM IST