Under CETA’s resolved safeguard framework, India secured duty-free market access for over 1.1 million tonnes of steel exports to the UK through elevated country-specific quotas and the Authorised Use Scheme. Concurrently, India and the European Union have initiated formal negotiations for India’s association with the €93.5 billion Horizon Europe research programme, alongside launching a joint deep-tech startup partnership and an EV charging technology innovation hub. In the commercial beverage sector, the Confederation of Indian Alcoholic Beverage Companies (CIABC) welcomed CETA’s phased import duty reductions on Scotch whisky, dropping from 150% down to 75% and eventually 40%, which provides domestic manufacturers with technical collaboration opportunities and an extended cushion to adapt to evolving market dynamics.