Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said India's trade push is far from over, hinting at fresh agreements in the pipeline, adding that another free trade agreement is nearing closure.
Speaking at the NDTV Profit Conclave 2026, the minister indicated that India may soon announce its next pact. He said, "So right now as we speak, I'm sorry I had to go out because some of these international engagements are at a very fast pace. We are almost on the verge of closing one more free trade agreement. You will hear about it very soon.” He did not identify the partner country.
Making the case for why global partners are increasingly keen to engage with India, Goyal linked India's growth trajectory to stronger negotiating leverage. He said, "There is so much attraction for the India story today. Fastest growing large economy for the last four years. Expected to be for the next 25 years the fastest growing large economy $4 trillion today. Any maths you can do and I see some very good experts in maths in the audience. This will be a $30 trillion economy in 2047. That's the India story that we are negotiating. And that's the strength which helps me negotiate smarter and better when I show people that I've got a 24 bill 26 billion waiting to grow. That's the business opportunity. It attracts people.”
Goyal argued that this scale and momentum is turning India into a magnet for investment and trade partnerships, and that the government intends to use that advantage to secure better market access while safeguarding domestic interests.
The remarks come amid a broader push by New Delhi to deepen trade ties, diversify supply chains and expand export opportunities across goods and services.
At the NDTV Profit Conclave 2026, Goyal also referenced multiple tracks of engagement, including discussions to launch negotiations with Canada, progress on talks with the GCC bloc, and efforts to expand a preferential trade arrangement with Mercosur suggesting that India's trade calendar will stay active in the near term.
With global trade under strain from geopolitical tensions and shifting tariff regimes, Goyal framed India's trade negotiations as central to long-term growth and the government's wider economic ambitions.
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