RAS question
India's FTA negotiations with Peru completed which round during October-November 2025?
Correct answer: (C) 9th round.
India's trade agreement negotiations with Peru completed their 9th round in Lima from 3 to 5 November 2025.
Explanation
India-Peru FTA talks are identified with the 9th Round of India-Peru Trade Agreement negotiations, held in Lima, Peru, from 3 to 5 November 2025. The PIB release says this round made substantive progress across key chapters of the proposed agreement, including trade in goods and services, rules of origin, technical barriers to trade, customs procedures, dispute settlement and critical minerals. That is why the answer is the 9th round, not a lower or higher round. The same release also links the agreement to wider India-Latin America trade engagement and notes possible cooperation in critical minerals, pharmaceuticals, automobiles, textiles and food processing.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) The 4th round is not supported for India-Peru in the source; the PIB release names the Peru negotiations as the 9th round.
- (B) The 7th round understates the stage reached, because the cited PIB release specifically records the India-Peru negotiations as the 9th round.
- (D) The 12th round overstates the negotiation stage; the official release confirms only the 9th round for India-Peru during November 2025.
Concept
This tests India's external-sector current affairs, especially free trade agreement negotiations and regional trade diplomacy. It recurs in RAS because trade agreements connect economy, international relations and strategic sectors such as critical minerals and pharmaceuticals.