Melbourne: Australia has “high hopes” of concluding a comprehensive economic cooperation agreement with India next year, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has said.

Turnbull, who agreed to visit India next year when he met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G20 summit in China in September, told business leaders recently that the government had “high hopes” of concluding the Australia-India Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement, Australian Associated Press reported yesterday.

Speaking to a business forum in sydney, Treasurer Scott Morrison yesterday reiterated that the government was keen to conclude trade negotiations with India. Negotiations were started in 2011 to seal an agreement to cut tariffs, improve trade in services and make it easier to invest. So far the two sides had almost nine rounds negotiations on Free Trade Agreement. The 9th round covered key issues including market access for goods, services and investment, rules of origin, customs procedures and trade facilitation, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, techinal barriers to trade, legal and institutional matters and dispute settlement. — PTI

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‘High hopes’ for trade deal with India: Australian PM