New UK Trade Minister Liam Fox to meet Nirmala Sitharaman on August 29

Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will meet her UK counterpart, Liam Fox, on August 28, to discuss ways to strengthen trade and economic ties between the two countries post-Brexit.

The meeting assumes significance as India and the UK are exploring the possibility of a free trade agreement following the Britain’s decision to exit from the European Union.

Both the ministers will discuss all the trade related issues, an official said.

Immediately after the Britain’s decision, the then Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skill Sajid Javid had met Sitharaman last month.

India is already negotiating a comprehensive free trade agreement with the EU, and after the Brexit, it will have to rework its strategy of negotiations.

Sitharaman had said with the UK moving out of the EU, the free trade agreement talks with the European Union are going to be a fresh exercise.

The bilateral trade between India and the UK stood at USD 14 billion in 2015-16 as against USD 14.33 billion in 2014-15.

India received USD 23.10 billion FDI from Britain between April 2000 and March 2016.