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What is the story about?
Government sources have indicated that India is likely to discuss market access issues with BRICS partners in the upcoming meetings in a push to increase bilateral trade. While India's trade with BRICS partners has been growing, imports have grown much faster than exports.
BRICS partners accounted for 41.5% of India’s merchandise imports and 21.7% of India's merchandise exports in FY 2025-26, when India's trade deficit with BRICS partners clocked $226.1 billion, nearly half of which is with China.
India's trade with BRICS partners in FY 2025-26 witnessed imports worth $321.8 billion & exports worth $95.7 billion. India's trade deficit in FY 2025-26 with BRICS countries was as follows:
- $112.16 billion with China
- $50+ billion with Russia
- $26.53 billion with UAE
- $20+ billion with Saudi Arabia
- $15.8 billion with Indonesia
India's trade deficit with China clocked $112.16 billion in FY 2025-26, with bilateral trade of $151.1 billion. India, China trade rose to $91.72 billion in first 6-months of the current FY, with trade deficit at $67.1 billion.
Imports from China in FY 26 clocked $131.63 billion, nearly 17% of India's total merchandise imports. India continues to engage with China to address market access issues, even as China claims that India's import curbs on items like solar panels violate WTO norms.
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry had submitted in Parliament that import dependence on China was due to rapid economic growth, industrialisation, urbanisation, expanding manufacturing base, and deepening integration with global value chains. Imports included critical inputs like Lithium, Cobalt, Nickel, Graphite, Copper, and Rare Earth Elements for clean energy technologies, EVs, electronics & semiconductor manufacturing.
Also Read: BRICS Summit 2026: Delhi prepares for global leaders as trade, defence talks take centre stage
Meanwhile, the ministry added that imports of intermediate goods, capital equipment and advanced technologies were to support key sectors like pharmaceuticals, fertilisers, energy, advanced manufacturing and infrastructure development. Predominant exports over the last five years have consisted of iron ore, Light naphtha, p-xylene, shrimps and castor oil.
The Embassy of India in Beijing has said that over time, export of raw material-based commodities was over-shadowed by Chinese exports of machinery, electronics, personal computers, Monolithic integrated circuits, parts of telephonic/telegraphic equipment, lithium-ion, fertilisers.
India has already urged Russia to cut non-tariff barriers for export of electronics, electrical products, automotives as a part of trade strategy to increase exports of pharmaceutical products, chemicals, engineering goods, machinery, automotive, agricultural, and marine goods as it looks to bridge the over $50 billion trade deficit. Efforts are underway to enhance the overall Rupee-Rouble trade.
Crude oil comprises around 80% of Russia's exports to India. India's goods exports to Russia in FY 25 were valued at $4.88 billion, while both sides aim at $100 billion bilateral trade by 2030. In December 2025, government sources had indicated that India may explore a separate services pact with Russia as the EAEU bloc is a customs union, and trade deals exclude the mandate of services.
Stating that India is not keen to include gold and precious metals in a proposed trade deal with the EAEU, government sources had earlier indicated that the initial talks would focus on sensitivities on both sides, frequency of discussions, as well as on products where trade is aimed to be increased. Highlighting that while India has flagged over 65 non-tariff barriers for its marine exports, sources had identified four types of barriers faced by India's pharma exports to the bloc: registration process, clinical trials, market access, price registration.
Explaining that India intends to remove regulatory overlap faced by exporters between Russian, EAEU and European rules, sources had said that efforts are underway to ensure clarity in rules for exports of products which need labels in Russian within and outside packages. FTA negotiations with the bloc are likely to cover issues like customs administration, e-commerce, IPR, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, tariffs, and technical regulations.
Yesterday, officials in India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had indicated that Indian and Russian central banks were in talks for a settlement mechanism in local currencies and added that the document for an agreement for labour mobility between India and Russia has been finalised and both sides are undertaking due processes for signing
Also Read: Is Xi Jinping attending the BRICS summit? Here's what we know so far
BRICS partners accounted for 41.5% of India’s merchandise imports and 21.7% of India's merchandise exports in FY 2025-26, when India's trade deficit with BRICS partners clocked $226.1 billion, nearly half of which is with China.
India's trade with BRICS partners in FY 2025-26 witnessed imports worth $321.8 billion & exports worth $95.7 billion. India's trade deficit in FY 2025-26 with BRICS countries was as follows:
- $112.16 billion with China
- $50+ billion with Russia
- $26.53 billion with UAE
- $20+ billion with Saudi Arabia
- $15.8 billion with Indonesia
India's trade deficit with China clocked $112.16 billion in FY 2025-26, with bilateral trade of $151.1 billion. India, China trade rose to $91.72 billion in first 6-months of the current FY, with trade deficit at $67.1 billion.
Imports from China in FY 26 clocked $131.63 billion, nearly 17% of India's total merchandise imports. India continues to engage with China to address market access issues, even as China claims that India's import curbs on items like solar panels violate WTO norms.
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry had submitted in Parliament that import dependence on China was due to rapid economic growth, industrialisation, urbanisation, expanding manufacturing base, and deepening integration with global value chains. Imports included critical inputs like Lithium, Cobalt, Nickel, Graphite, Copper, and Rare Earth Elements for clean energy technologies, EVs, electronics & semiconductor manufacturing.
Also Read: BRICS Summit 2026: Delhi prepares for global leaders as trade, defence talks take centre stage
Meanwhile, the ministry added that imports of intermediate goods, capital equipment and advanced technologies were to support key sectors like pharmaceuticals, fertilisers, energy, advanced manufacturing and infrastructure development. Predominant exports over the last five years have consisted of iron ore, Light naphtha, p-xylene, shrimps and castor oil.
The Embassy of India in Beijing has said that over time, export of raw material-based commodities was over-shadowed by Chinese exports of machinery, electronics, personal computers, Monolithic integrated circuits, parts of telephonic/telegraphic equipment, lithium-ion, fertilisers.
India has already urged Russia to cut non-tariff barriers for export of electronics, electrical products, automotives as a part of trade strategy to increase exports of pharmaceutical products, chemicals, engineering goods, machinery, automotive, agricultural, and marine goods as it looks to bridge the over $50 billion trade deficit. Efforts are underway to enhance the overall Rupee-Rouble trade.
Crude oil comprises around 80% of Russia's exports to India. India's goods exports to Russia in FY 25 were valued at $4.88 billion, while both sides aim at $100 billion bilateral trade by 2030. In December 2025, government sources had indicated that India may explore a separate services pact with Russia as the EAEU bloc is a customs union, and trade deals exclude the mandate of services.
Stating that India is not keen to include gold and precious metals in a proposed trade deal with the EAEU, government sources had earlier indicated that the initial talks would focus on sensitivities on both sides, frequency of discussions, as well as on products where trade is aimed to be increased. Highlighting that while India has flagged over 65 non-tariff barriers for its marine exports, sources had identified four types of barriers faced by India's pharma exports to the bloc: registration process, clinical trials, market access, price registration.
Explaining that India intends to remove regulatory overlap faced by exporters between Russian, EAEU and European rules, sources had said that efforts are underway to ensure clarity in rules for exports of products which need labels in Russian within and outside packages. FTA negotiations with the bloc are likely to cover issues like customs administration, e-commerce, IPR, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, tariffs, and technical regulations.
Yesterday, officials in India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had indicated that Indian and Russian central banks were in talks for a settlement mechanism in local currencies and added that the document for an agreement for labour mobility between India and Russia has been finalised and both sides are undertaking due processes for signing
Also Read: Is Xi Jinping attending the BRICS summit? Here's what we know so far
