UK: India reconsiders tariffs on imports of bulk whisky

Higher tariff concessions for imports of bulk whisky are being considered by the Indian government amidst its India-UK free-trade agreement (FTA) negotiations. The considerations, laid out in recent reports, aim to address a contentious issue in the trade discussions which outlines how bulk whisky imports can generate work domestically due to assisting in the need to set up bottling plants in India for the finished products. Despite the discussions. local spirits producers are concerned that the India-UK FTA could contribute to an uplift in whisky imports and cannibalise Indian spirits which are already seeing competition from British whisky. According to the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA), India recently became the UK’s largest market for Scotch in terms of volumes, with a 60% surge in imports in 2022 from the previous year. India imported 219 million 70cl bottles of Scotch last year. However, while Britain has reportedly been pushing India to cut its tariffs on whisky imports, ...