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Trade Minister Todd McClay.
Almost a year to the day from when he made his first trip to India, Trade Minister Todd McClay is jetting off there again just before Christmas.
This is part of an ongoing programme to build relationships with one of the world’s most powerful economies and a country NZ would dearly love to get a Free Trade Agreement with.
This will be Todd McClay’s fourth trip to India within a year.
Speaking to Rural News, just before he left, he said the relationship between the two countries is in a much better space than it was a year ago. He says his talks will centre around ways that the two countries can trade more and says already some barriers have come down with logging exports able to go there now.
“But it’s too soon to be talking about any kind of trade architecture, however the Indian government is clear that our relationship with them is a priority across all facets including trade,” he says.
McClay says cultural ties between the two nations are strong and says the visit here of the Indian President and Christopher Luxon’s meeting with the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi all point to a growing relationship. He says Mr Modi has personally invited Mr Luxon to visit India and says this will happen in the new year. McClay says accompanying our PM will be a large business delegation.
“All this points to the fact that we are heading in the right direction,” he says.
The New Zealand-India Free Trade Agreement concluded in December is "a significant step toward unlocking one of the world's largest and fastest growing consumer markets", says New Zealand Winegrowers Chief Executive Philip Gregan.
Trade is important to our industry, whether it’s because 90% of our wine sales are in international markets, because of the international tourists who spend money at our cellar doors, or because of the equipment we source from overseas to operate our wineries and vineyards.
Leading trade analyst Stephen Jacobi has rubbished claims that New Zealand could have got a better free trade deal with India if it had prolonged the negotiations.
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While things are looking positive for the red meat sector in 2026, volatility in global trade remains a concern, says the Meat Industry Association (MIA).
The quest to find innovative practical, scientific solutions to deal with water-related issues at a catchment level has been the theme of an important conference at Massey University last week.
One of the country's top Māori farms faces a long and costly rebuild to get the property back to where it was before recent storms ripped through it.
The latest Global Dairy Trade auction results have delivered a boost to dairy farmers.
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A Hawke's Bay apple orchardist supports the Government's objective of doubling exports but says this won't happen in the horticulture sector unless there's a change in the process for bringing new plant material into the country.
