An Analysis of India's Revealed Comparative Advantage in Merchandise Trade with Australia

Abstract

India's export sector has considerably improved since 1991 economic and trade reforms. It has gained momentum after the signing of various trade agreements with several countries. India and Australia started free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations over a decade ago in 2011 and finally concluded a landmark Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) on 2nd April 2022. This study examines India's trade relations with Australia using the revealed comparative advantage (RCA) index and trade intensity index (TII) for exports and imports, to determine the patterns of exports and areas of specialisation of the two countries. The findings suggest that the bilateral trade between India and Australia has not strengthened. However, India enjoys a comparative advantage in several product groups, which fall into the category of primary goods, low-technology manufacturers, and manufactured goods as well. Overall, the RCA is much higher for India's exports than that for Australia's exports to India. The study finds that India has trade potential in several product groups with Australia and efforts should be made to bring greater benefits from the trade agreement for both countries in the years to come.