New Delhi, Apr 14 (IANS): India and Spain are looking forward to considerable progress in the ongoing India-European Union (EU) free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations during the upcoming Spanish presidency of the EU from July to December this year.

Both the nations have also agreed to further extend cooperation in sectors like civil aviation, automation, surveillance, high speed railways and related segments.

These aspects came under discussion during the 12th session of the India-Spain joint commission for economic cooperation (JCEC), which was held on April 13 here.

Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal and Xiana Mendez, Spanish Secretary of State for Trade, co-chaired the session, as both the sides celebrated the Golden Jubilee edition of the India-Spain Joint Commission mechanism which was established in 1972.

With an investment of $3.7 billion, 250 Spanish companies are active in India and 40 Indian companies are present in Spain, working in different sectors such as IT, pharma, renewable energy, automobiles and infrastructure, among others.

Xiana emphasised on the importance of the India-Spain relationship and the Spanish partnership in India's development stories. Both sides also agreed on further cooperation in the field of renewable energy, shipping, ports, tourism, infrastructure, etc.

Both sides also discussed various market access issues faced by their exporters and agreed to resolve the same through bilateral discussions.