India and the United Arab Emirates on Friday signed a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) covering goods, services and digital trade, among others, that will allow 90% of the country’s exports a duty-free access to the Emirates.

The CEPA is likely to benefit about $26 billion worth of Indian products that are currently subjected to 5% import duty by the UAE, India’s third-biggest trading partner behind the US and China.

The bilateral trade pact is India’s first in the region and the first comprehensive trade agreement with any country in a decade.

“It is expected that the CEPA will lead to increase in bilateral trade from the current $60 bn to $100 bn in the next 5 years,” the government said in a statement after the India-UAE Virtual Summit attended prime minister Narendra Modi and the crown prince of Abu Dhabi HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

“HH @MohamedBinZayed and I believe that the India-UAE CEPA signed today will be a game-changer in our economic ties,” PM Modi tweeted after the virtual summit.

Through the pact, Indian exporters will also get access to the much larger Arab and African markets.

India was the UAE’s largest export destination and second-largest trade partner in 2019 and the eighth biggest investor with a cumulative foreign direct investment of nearly $11 billion so far.

“Both nations are entering a golden era of economic & trade cooperation with the signing of India-UAE CEPA,” commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal tweeted.

India’s labour-intensive and employment-generating industries such as gems and jewellery, textiles, leather, footwear, sports goods, furniture, pharmaceuticals, medical devices and automobiles are expected to gain the most from the pact.

The UAE is offering overall duty elimination on over 97% of its tariff lines corresponding to 99% of India’s exports in value terms. Separately, zero duty on an additional 9% of the trade value on products such as electronics, chemicals and petrochemicals, ceramics and machinery, is likely later in 5-10 years.