India: Future EU free trade agreement accelerates expansion course
New services with a focus on warehousing, truck transportation and customs clearance.
A "surge in demand" for sea freight is expected by Ajay Kumar Bhatt, Managing Director of a. hartrodt India – if the free trade agreement between India and the European Union (EU) comes into force this year. This was agreed by EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi at the end of February. When trade barriers are removed, Bhatt expects a "significant uptick in the movement of goods". In order to cope with this, "ocean carriers will need to optimize their networks and potentially establish new routes or improve existing ones between European and Indian ports," he says.
Europe is India's biggest trading partner
Background to the planned free trade agreement are the special tariffs announced by the US government – European steel and aluminum products, for example, are already subject to punitive tariffs of 25 percent. Europe is India's biggest trading partner, Ursula von der Leyen estimated the trade volume at the press point in New Delhi at 120 billion euros in 2024. Trade has tripled within two decades, she said.
Focus on states of Maharashtra and Gujarat
"As the Indian economy is growing by 6 to 7 percent, we are sticking to our growth target of 12 to 15 percent on year-on-year basis," says Ajay Bhatt. With 80 employees at 13 locations, he believes that a. hartrodt India is excellently positioned. The national company is also expanding its sales and operational offices in important industrial centers on the east coast. In Maharashtra, the focus is on Pune, in Gujarat on Ahmedabad and a future location in Vadodara. "We are forging partnerships and developing strategies for new services with a focus on warehousing, truck transportation and customs clearance," informs Ajay Bhatt.
According to him, the Indian logistics sector has "developed significantly". In the World Bank's Logistics Performance Index, the country recently has risen from rank 54 (2014) to rank 38 (2023). Ajay Bhatt predicts further "consolidation of the logistics market".