MUSCAT, JULY 9
Indian exporters have begun using the Oman-India Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) to move early seafood and processed-food shipments to the Sultanate of Oman, offering one of the first practical tests of the trade pact since it entered into force on June 1.
The agreement, signed in Muscat on December 18, 2025, and ratified in Oman by Royal Decree No 30-2026, is designed to deepen trade and investment links between the two countries by reducing tariffs and improving market access for goods and services.
According to Indian government statements, CEPA provides duty-free access for goods covering 99.38 per cent of India’s export value to Oman and 98.08 per cent of Oman’s tariff lines.
The figures underline the scale of market access secured by Indian exporters, although the real commercial impact will depend on how quickly companies on both sides use the agreement.
One of the first visible examples came from India’s seafood sector. A chilled fish consignment destined for Oman was flagged off from Chennai Air Cargo Complex on June 1 by Aqua World Exports Pvt Ltd, coinciding with the entry into force of the agreement.
India’s Press Information Bureau said CEPA reduced import duties on major marine products, including shrimp, fish and cuttlefish, from 5 per cent to zero. It also said the agreement includes sanitary and phytosanitary provisions aimed at supporting faster clearance of perishable goods.
For exporters, such provisions are important because seafood trade depends on speed, cold-chain efficiency, food safety approval and predictable customs procedures. For Oman, the development may support wider choice for importers, retailers, hotels and restaurants, but it does not automatically mean lower prices for consumers.
The final price effect will depend on shipping costs, distributor margins, retail pricing, demand and competition in the local market.
A second early signal came from India’s processed-food sector.
The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority facilitated the export of a 40-tonne biscuit consignment from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh to Oman. The shipment was undertaken by Shree Tirupati Balajee Industries Pvt Ltd and was described by the Indian authority as the first biscuit export consignment from Varanasi to Oman following CEPA.
The consignment was planned to move from Varanasi to the Inland Container Depot in Kanpur for customs clearance before being transported to Jawaharlal Nehru Port for shipment to Oman. That route highlights how India is seeking to connect interior food-processing and manufacturing centres with Gulf markets through preferential trade access.
For Oman, the early shipments present both an opportunity and a policy question.
Lower tariffs can make imported goods more competitive at the border and may increase activity for Omani importers, logistics firms and distributors. But the agreement’s wider value to the national economy will depend on whether Omani companies also move quickly to use preferential access to the Indian market.
Oman has potential openings in sectors including dates, frankincense, marble, petrochemicals, fertilisers and selected industrial products. The challenge is to convert tariff access into actual export contracts, distribution channels and long-term commercial partnerships.
The first shipments are modest in scale, but important in timing. They show that Indian exporters are moving quickly to use CEPA. The next test is whether the agreement produces balanced trade growth, stronger private-sector participation and measurable gains for businesses on both sides.
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