New Delhi [India], July 26 (ANI): Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal highlighted on Saturday that growing international scrutiny of the European Union's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) could weigh more heavily on European industries than its intended targets.

'There is a lot of opposition to CBAM in the EU also. In fact, EU's infrastructure will become costlier. EU's housing will become costlier. EU's cost of manufacturing will become costlier, which will hurt their international trade. So in some sense, the sufferer will not be India. The sufferer will be industry and business in EU, which may actually open up more doors and opportunities for India, given our high quality and cost competitiveness in many other markets of the world,' Goyal said.

He further said, 'Having said that about CBAM, even in Europe, there is a lot of rethink. In fact, when I go to different countries in Europe and I criticize CBAM all the industry players, CEOs of very large companies, come up to me and thank me. They say you speak like you are our minister,' Goyal stated.

Emphasising Prime Minister Narendra Modi's approach of turning challenges into opportunities, Goyal asserted that India, will be able to deal with such issues.

Addressing a press conference Goyal said, 'we are sovereign and a very powerful nation today, so if anybody hurts our export interest, we will react and retaliate or rebalance to make sure that our interest is not hurt. So I can assure everybody that no unilateral measures which hurt India can will go away without a proportionate response from it.'

On a separate note, Goyal provided an update on the India-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA), which has made significant progress, even in sensitive areas like environment, gender, and intellectual property rights.

'We have been able to come to terms on even issues like gender, environment, Intellectual Property Rights. We have protected all the sensitive sectors of India vis-a-vis the UK. Every country has different sectors that are sensitive. Dairy, rice and sugar, we have not opened for the United Kingdom. So, in specific areas of concern where we do not wish to give access, we have been able to protect so that there's absolutely no area for concern for India in this FTA,' said Goyal.

He emphasized that the deal brings enormous benefits to Indian exporters, ensuring access to the UK market with minimal tariffs.

'We have got 99 per cent preferential access in most cases, zero duty access for the exports that we do to the United Kingdom. So zero compromise, extensive benefit. It makes for a phenomenal Free Trade Agreement, which will not only support export of goods and services, but will also bring a stable, predictable and secure framework in which India can become a trusted partner for UK's supply chains, encouraging more investments into India.'

The much-awaited landmark India-UK Free Trade Agreement was signed on Thursday, in the presence of Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and his British counterpart Keir Starmer during PM Modi's two-day visit to the UK.

On May 6, Prime Minister Modi and Prime Minister Starmer announced the successful conclusion of a mutually beneficial India-UK Free Trade Agreement. This forward-looking Agreement is aligned with India's vision of Viksit Bharat 2047 and complements the growth aspirations of both countries.

Both nations desire to increase their trade to USD 120 billion by 2030. On Thursday, the UK government said that India's average tariff on UK products will drop from 15 per cent to 3 per cent under the India-UK FTA. (ANI)