At a time when India is accelerating free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations to diversify exports and soften the impact of US tariffs, a Niti Aayog report has said that India’s trade deficit with its FTA partner countries is rising sharply, but exports from sunrise industries such as electronics are growing their foothold globally. The Niti Aayog’s ‘Trade Watch Quarterly’ report released Tuesday said India’s trade deficit with FTA partners rose 59.2 per cent between April and June last year compared to the previous year as imports jumped by 10 per cent to $65.3 billion and exports declined by 9 per cent to $38.7 billion. India has concluded FTAs with Oman, New Zealand and the UK in 2025 and is in active negotiations with the EU, the US, Australia, Bahrain, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), Canada and the Southern African Customs Union (SACU). New Delhi is also considering a Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) with Brazil and Israel. However, the report said that India’s export performance during the period shows clear structural …