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Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has said the new Australian government supports the trade pact signed with India, and they are expected to soon approach their parliament for approval of the agreement. India-Australia Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) signed in April needs ratification by Australian parliament before its implementation.

The agreement, once implemented, will provide duty-free access to the Australian market for over 6,000 broad sectors of India, including textiles, leather, furniture, jewellery and machinery. Goyal had earlier said that the agreement would help in taking bilateral trade from $27.5 billion at present to $45-50 billion in the next five years.

Under the pact, Australia is offering zero-duty access to India for about 96.4 per cent of exports (by value) from day one. This covers many products that currently attract 4-5 per cent customs duty in Australia.  Labour-intensive sectors, which would gain immensely include textiles and apparel, few agricultural and fish products, leather, footwear, furniture, sports goods, jewellery, machinery, electrical goods and railway wagons.