India has emerged as the bigger winner in its newly concluded free trade agreement with the European Union, according to US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, who cast the deal as a strategic shift driven by global trade tensions and Washington’s tariff policies.Also read: Top winners and losers of the ‘mother of all trade deals’“First of all, strategically it’s important to understand that because President Trump has prioritized domestic production and essentially started charging a fee for other countries to access our market, these countries are trying to find other outlets for their overproduction and so the EU is turning to India to try to find a place,” Greer told Fox Business.
He added that the EU, heavily reliant on trade, needs alternative markets if access to the US becomes more costly.Greer suggested the balance of benefits tilts towards New Delhi. “I’ve looked at some of the details of the deal so far. I think India comes out on top on this frankly. They get more market access into Europe,” he said. Referring to comments by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on worker mobility, he noted, “It sounds like they have some additional immigration rights. I don’t know for sure but President von der Leyen of the EU has talked about mobility for Indian workers into Europe.” He further added: “So I think on net India is going to have a heyday with this. They have low cost labor and it looks like the EU is doubling down on globalization when we’re trying to fix some of the problems of globalization here in the US.”India and the EU on Tuesday announced the conclusion of long-running FTA negotiations, a process that began in 2007 and faced years of deadlock over market access, automobiles, wines and spirits, data rules and public procurement. Talks were relaunched in 2022 alongside parallel negotiations on investment protection and geographical indications.Under the deal, India gains preferential access to the EU across 97 per cent of tariff lines, covering 99.5 per cent of trade value. A large share of labour-intensive exports — including textiles, leather, footwear, gems and jewellery, marine products, tea, coffee and spices — will see immediate duty elimination. Goods worth an estimated USD 33 billion that currently face EU duties of 4–26 per cent are set to enter at zero duty once the pact takes effect. Sensitive sectors such as dairy and certain agricultural products have been shielded.For the EU, India is offering concessions on over 92 per cent of tariff lines, with many seeing immediate or phased duty cuts. European exports such as olive oil, processed foods and certain high-technology goods are expected to benefit, while tariffs on wines, spirits and some meats will be reduced.Von der Leyen described the agreement as a decisive moment that sends “a strong signal to the world”, framing it as the foundation of a deeper economic and strategic partnership between the two sides.
