New Delhi, April 23, 2026: Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday held a virtual meeting with Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Sayed, Qatar’s Minister of State for Foreign Trade Affairs, to explore ways to strengthen bilateral trade and investment ties amid rising geopolitical tensions.
During the interaction, both sides discussed opportunities to deepen economic cooperation and enhance supply chain resilience in a rapidly evolving global trade environment.
“We discussed ways to further enhance our bilateral trade and investment ties while strengthening supply chain resilience,” Goyal said in a post on X, expressing optimism about expanding the strategic partnership between India and Qatar.
Separately, the minister highlighted ongoing efforts to boost trade engagement with other partners. Earlier this month, India and Oman discussed unlocking opportunities under a proposed Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) during talks with Anwar bin Hilal bin Hamdoun Al Jabri, Oman’s Minister of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion.
Goyal also said that the first tranche of the proposed India–US bilateral trade agreement is close to finalisation, with officials currently engaged in discussions in Washington, D.C..
“We have almost finalised the first tranche of the bilateral trade agreement,” he said earlier, adding that India is working on securing preferential market access in the United States compared to its competitors.
India and the United States had recently decided to reschedule talks between chief trade negotiators after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariff hikes.
