India and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) on Tuesday set the stage for a complete Free Commerce Settlement (FTA), formally initiating negotiations with the signing of a Joint Assertion in New Delhi.
The doc was signed by Union Commerce and Business Minister Piyush Goyal and GCC Secretary Common Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi, with senior officers and delegations from each side current on the ceremony.
Addressing the gathering, Goyal mentioned the Joint Assertion, along with the Phrases of Reference for the FTA signed earlier this month, alerts a decisive advance in India’s financial engagement with the GCC. He famous that the proposed settlement would construct on long-standing historic, cultural and industrial linkages between India and the Gulf area.
Goyal mentioned that in an setting of worldwide financial uncertainty, the choice to maneuver ahead with negotiations for a powerful and mutually useful commerce pact was well timed. He added that the settlement would allow each side to leverage the complementarities of their respective economies.
GCC Secretary Common Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi mentioned the FTA would assist deepen commerce and funding flows by providing larger predictability and certainty to companies throughout the 2 areas.
Commerce growth between India and the GCC
The Ministry of Commerce and Business mentioned the proposed pact carries vital potential to increase commerce between India and the GCC. The bloc is presently India’s largest buying and selling companion grouping, with bilateral commerce touching USD 178.56 billion in FY 2024–25. India exported items price USD 56.87 billion to the GCC throughout the interval, whereas imports stood at USD 121.68 billion. The area accounts for greater than 15 per cent of India’s general world commerce.
Over the previous 5 years, commerce between India and GCC nations has grown at a mean annual charge of 15.3 per cent.
India’s principal exports to the area embody engineering items, rice, textiles, equipment, and gems and jewelry. Imports are led by crude oil, LNG, petrochemicals, and valuable metals resembling gold.
The GCC, with a mixed GDP of roughly USD 2.3 trillion and a inhabitants of about 61.5 million, ranks among the many high ten world financial groupings. It is usually a key supply of overseas direct funding for India, with cumulative inflows exceeding USD 31.14 billion as of September 2025.
Almost ten million Indians reside and work in GCC nations, reinforcing people-to-people ties and strengthening financial linkages. Indian corporations additionally keep a powerful footprint throughout member states of the bloc.
