India, Qatar vow to double annual trade to $28bn in five years

NEW DELHI: Qatar has committed to investing $10 billion in India across various sectors, the two nations said in a joint statement on Tuesday, after Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani visited New Delhi.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he had a "very productive meeting" with Qatar's Emir, who was on a two-day visit to New Delhi.

"Trade featured prominently in our talks. We want to increase and diversify India-Qatar trade linkages," Modi said in a post on X. It was the first such visit by a Qatari Emir to the South Asian nation in 10 years.

According to the statement, Qatar will invest $10 billion in India in infrastructure, technology, manufacturing, food security, logistics, hospitality and other sectors.

The two countries will aim to double their annual trade to $28 billion in the next five years and are exploring the signing of a free trade agreement, the Indian foreign ministry said earlier in the day.

Bilateral trade between the two nations stood at $18.77 billion in the fiscal year that ended in March 2023, mainly comprising liquefied natural gas imports from Qatar.

Qatar accounted for more than 48% of India's LNG imports that year.

The two sides said they would work to enhance bilateral energy cooperation, including mutual investments in energy infrastructure, as well as look at settlement of bilateral trade in their respective currencies.