NEW DELHI (AP) – India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Friday signed an agreement aimed at boosting bilateral trade to USD100 billion from the current USD60 billion over the next five years, an Indian Foreign Ministry statement said.
The accord signed by India’s Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and UAE Economy Minister Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri is intended at benefitting business through enhanced market access and reduced tariffs.
The two sides set out a roadmap for cooperation in sectors including energy, trade, climate action, emerging technologies, skills and education, food security, healthcare, defence and security.
The UAE is India’s third-largest export destination after the United States (US) and China with exports reaching nearly USD16 billion for 2020-21. More than three million Indians employed in the Gulf state send home billions of dollars in remittances every year.
India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, held a virtual summit and oversaw the signing of the agreement by the two ministers in New Delhi.
