India and Brazil Vow to Intensify Trade Relationship

Following the 17th BRICS summit which took place in Rio de Janeiro on July 6-7, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi traveled to Brazil’s capital Brasilia for an official state visit on Tuesday. While it was Modi’s fourth trip to Brazil in the past ten years, the official meeting with President Lula was only the second bilateral state visit of an Indian leader to Brazil, the first one having taken place 57 years ago.

According to a special briefing given by Ministry of External Affairs Secretary Periasamy Kumaran, Modi and Lula discussed the “entire spectrum of the partnership” between the two countries, including defense and security, energy and digital transformation as well as artificial intelligence, among other issues. Both leaders agreed on the opportunities to amplify and diversify bilateral trade and set a trade target of $20 billion to be achieved in the next five years.

As our chart, based on UN Comtrade data, shows, bilateral trade between India and Brazil has grown significantly over the past decade, peaking at a total trade volume of $16.8 billion in 2022 before dropping back to $11.9 billion in 2024. That means the set target would signify a 67-percent increase in bilateral trade flows by 2030. Last year, India exported merchandise worth $6.4 billion to Brazil, while $5.5 billion worth of goods went the other way. India’s main exports to Brazil include chemicals, oil and pharmaceutical products, while Brazil mainly supplies India with agricultural products such as cane sugar and vegetable oils.