India's widening trade deficit with key FTA partners
India's trade gap with big FTA partners like ASEAN, Japan, and South Korea has grown a lot—these three now make up nearly 37% of the country's total trade deficit.
The ASEAN deficit especially shot up to $45.2 billion in FY25, compared to $25.8 billion just three years ago, according to a recent government analysis.
Mixed bag with newer FTAs
India's newer FTAs with Australia and the UAE have been a bit of a mixed bag. The trade deficit with Australia has shrunk but is still something to watch.
On the bright side, India keeps a small surplus with Mauritius, and more businesses are actually using these new deals—with certificate usage up nearly 24.7% for the UAE and 19% for Australia.
India not fully tapping into FTAs with Japan, South Korea
Despite all these agreements, India isn't fully tapping into its FTAs with Japan, South Korea, or ASEAN—utilization rates for these deals are stuck between just 4-25%.
There's definitely room to get more out of them and maybe help close that growing gap.