'India, EU on cusp of historic trade pact'

India and the European Union (EU) are on the “cusp of a historic trade agreement” that will create a market of two billion people and account for nearly a fourth of global gross domestic product, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Tuesday, ahead of a visit to New Delhi for a summit that is expected to lead to the conclusion of talks for the deal.

- Rezaul H. Laskar

The India-EU free trade agreement—being described as the “mother of all deals”—will give the 27-member bloc a first-mover advantage with one of the world’s fastest growing and most dynamic continents at a time when geopolitical shocks require that Europe build a new form of independence, Von der Leyen said in an address at the World Economic Forum in Davos.