India-Uk FTA to stimulate the competitiveness of local tire makers on the British market: Atma

The competitiveness of Indian tire manufacturers on the British market will be strengthened as a result of the removal of import duties under the free trade agreement in India-UK, said Automotive Tyre Manufacturers’ Association on Tuesday.

Automotive Tyre Manufacturers’ Association (ATMA) welcomes the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between India and the VK and said that the deal is an important step forward in improving bilateral trade, especially for the Indian tire industry.

“The removal of import duties on tires by the UK under the CETA will considerably strengthen the competitiveness of Indian tire manufacturers on the British market,” said Atma chairman Arun Mammen.

He further said: “This allows Indian tire companies to build on the strong export momentum that has already been seen in recent years and further deepen our presence in developed markets.”

Atma said under the India-Uk Ceta, all customs duties on tires and rubber products that have been exported from India to the UK, were eliminated with immediate effect.

“This step is expected to offer a major interpretation for Indian tires to the UK – an important European market – by improving the competitiveness of the price and improving market access,” it added. The body of the tire industry said that India has exported tires worth RS 732 Crore to the UK in FY2024-25 and registered an annual basis of 11 percent of RS 660 Crore in FY2023-24. This follows a growth of 10 percent in the previous tax if the export was on RS 602 Crore in FY2022-23. With the elimination of tasks, the industry expects that this upward process will continue and accelerate in the coming years, it added.

Atma said that the free trade agreement with the UK offers a pillow for the domestic industry via a spread rate liberalization schedule.

The import of important categories of tires from the UK in India is placed in the E10 staging category, which means that import duties on these products will gradually be reduced over a period of ten years.

This phased approach brings export opportunities in balance with a calibrated opening of the Indian market, it added.

“The double framework of immediate export wins and gradual tariff relaxation in the input is balanced and in the interest of long -term sustainability,” said Mammen.

Atma said that the Indian tire industry, which has already arisen as an important exporter (exportt over RS 25,000 crore in FY2024-25) with strong production options and R&D investments, will win considerably under the Ceta framework.