Trade and Investment Minister Todd McClay departed for New Delhi on 11 December to lead the next round of ministerial-level negotiations on a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with India.
This visit is being seen as one of the final stages of FTA talks, as New Zealand and India move closer to sealing the deal, after last Friday, 5 December, 2025, at an India-NZ Business Council (INZBC) event in Auckland, McClay said a free trade deal with India would be signed next year.
The negotiations have been described as “deep” with “substantial progress,” according to Business Desk. However, Indian side of negotiators are reportedly still unwilling to reduce tariffs on dairy products such as milk, cheese, and milk powder. Significant progress is believed to have been made, however, in cutting tariffs on other exports, including kiwifruit and wood.
Also Read: Explainer: What Does An FTA With India Mean For Kiwi Indians?
In a separate statement issued on 11 December, 2025, Mcclay mentioned “Since Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and I formally launched negotiations with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 21 March this year, momentum has been growing."
The visit follows Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal’s visit to New Zealand in November, during which talks were held in Rotorua, and McClay’s own visit to Mumbai later that month.
This marks McClay’s seventh visit to India since the election — including leading a forestry trade mission — and his fifteenth face-to-face meeting with Minister Goyal and other senior Indian ministers. New Zealand’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Winston Peters, has also visited India twice in that period, and the Prime Minister led New Zealand’s largest-ever business delegation there in March.
“In return we have welcomed the President of India to New Zealand in 2024 and two Indian ministerial visits this year, including Minister Goyal heading a large business delegation.”
McClay said a high-quality FTA with India is strongly in New Zealand’s national interest.
Also Read: India & New Zealand Fast-Pedal Towards Reaching Trade Accord
“Without an agreement we are rapidly losing ground to competitors. Australia and the UK already have FTAs and the EU is deep in negotiations. This puts our exporters at a significant disadvantage and we are losing market share as a result,” McClay said.
“Before Australia signed its FTA with India in 2022, New Zealand supplied almost 90 per cent of India’s lamb imports. Today that has collapsed to around 8 per cent, while Australia now supplies over 90 per cent. That is the direct result of New Zealand sheep farmers facing a 33 per cent tariff while Australian product enters duty-free.”
McClay said a comprehensive deal would support jobs and generate “billions in new export revenue by giving our world-class producers fairer access to a market of 1.4 billion people that is growing fast.”
He acknowledged that there is still work to do, but said the Government is pushing hard for an “Australia-plus” outcome that delivers genuine preferential advantage for New Zealand exporters.
“I back hard-working New Zealand farmers, growers and businesses to not only compete with, but outperform, the Australians in this market.”
He emphasised that the Government is focused on rebuilding the economy, lifting wages and improving living standards.
“Securing better access to one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing economies is a key part of that plan — while fully protecting New Zealand’s right to make our own laws in the future,” he added.
He concluded by saying that many countries are increasing tariffs and putting up trade barriers. “As the world does deals with India we are missing out,” he said.