Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday highlighted India’s expanding engagement with the global economy and its efforts to strengthen participation in global value and supply chains.
Addressing the Leadership Dialogue at the 13th PAFI Annual Forum 2026 in New Delhi, Goyal said India was negotiating trade and economic partnerships from the position of an economy expected to grow into a USD 30 trillion economy.
Goyal said India currently negotiates with the world as a USD 4 trillion economy, while its economy on a purchasing power parity (PPP) basis is around USD 20 trillion, making it the world’s third-largest. He said the gap between the two measures would narrow as India progresses towards its goal of becoming a USD 30 trillion economy.
The minister said India’s approach to trade negotiations reflects its changing economic position and the objective of strengthening integration with global markets. He highlighted the potential for broader economic partnerships to facilitate the movement of goods, services, tourists and students, as well as greater cooperation in sports and education.
He said ongoing negotiations include engagements with Canada, Chile, Peru, the Southern African Customs Union (SACU), Mexico, Maldives, Eurasia, Central Asia, Russia, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and Israel.
These engagements, Goyal said, are aimed at expanding opportunities for India to participate in global value and supply chains and facilitating the movement of goods and services.
The minister said India’s semiconductor consumption is expected to exceed USD 150 billion annually over the next five years. He also stressed the need to develop capabilities across the artificial intelligence ecosystem, including large language models and agentic models.
Highlighting the growth of India’s startup ecosystem, Goyal said the country had around 400-500 startups when the Startup India initiative was launched. India has since become the world’s third-largest startup ecosystem, with more than 120 unicorns, he said.
Goyal said the focus was now on fostering innovation and promoting Indian startups in the deep-tech ecosystem. He also highlighted India’s emergence as the third country to have a rocket launched into space by the private sector.
The minister said India’s young population was increasingly informed about global developments and opportunities and expressed confidence in the ability of the country’s youth to make informed choices about their future.
