Auckland [New Zealand], July 9 (ANI): A day before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s scheduled visit to New Zealand, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced that 57% of the country’s exports to India would be “tariff-free from day one.”
Luxon took to social media platform X on Thursday to welcome the proposed India-New Zealand trade pact, emphasizing that it would significantly benefit New Zealand businesses by expanding access to the Indian market.
“New Zealand businesses are set to boom with our India Trade Deal. Fifty-seven per cent of everything we export to India will be tariff-free from day one,” Luxon said.
The announcement comes ahead of Modi’s two-day state visit to New Zealand, scheduled for July 10-11, at the invitation of Luxon. The visit marks the first by an Indian prime minister to New Zealand in nearly 40 years.
Earlier, while announcing Modi’s first official visit to the country, Luxon posted on X, “I’m delighted to announce that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will make his first official visit to New Zealand next week.”
Luxon said India is one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing economies and is of critical importance to New Zealand’s economic future.
“We are taking the two countries’ relationship to the next level with our New Zealand-India Free Trade Agreement, signed in April, which will deliver more jobs, higher exports and stronger economic growth for New Zealand,” he said.
He added that the agreement would create new opportunities by giving New Zealand goods and services access to a consumer market of 1.4 billion people, “bringing more money into Kiwi communities, creating jobs and lifting wages.”
India and New Zealand signed a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) earlier this year to strengthen bilateral trade, boost investment, and expand cooperation in goods and services.
Under the agreement, all Indian exports will receive duty-free access to the New Zealand market.
For India, the pact strengthens its presence in a high-income Pacific economy and aligns with its broader Indo-Pacific economic strategy.
For New Zealand, the FTA provides expanded access to one of the world’s fastest-growing major economies amid ongoing global trade uncertainty.
During his visit to Auckland, Modi is scheduled to hold high-level bilateral talks with Luxon to review the full spectrum of bilateral relations, with a particular focus on trade, commerce, and defense cooperation.
Modi is also expected to meet leading business and sports figures and address the Indian diaspora. (ANI)
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