India will not open its dairy market for imports, industry and commerce minister Piyush Goyal said on Monday after New Delhi clinched a free trade agreement with New Zealand that offers no concessions on dairy access. Goyal’s comments come at a time a trade deal with the US, much larger than the New Zealand FTA in scope and impact, has been hanging fire for months. Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the New Zealand FTA on Monday morning after he had spoken to his counterpart Christopher Luxon over the phone. “New Zealand First is regrettably opposed to the India Free Trade Agreement announced today.... Regrettably, this is a bad deal for New Zealand. He said the India FTA would be New Zealand’s first trade deal to exclude his country’s major dairy products, including milk, cheese and butter.

Source: The Telegraph December 23, 2025 05:58 UTC