Overview
- India named Additional Secretary Ajay Bhadoo as chief negotiator while the GCC’s Raja Al Marzouqi invited the first round to be held in Riyadh in the coming months.
- The terms of reference lay out the framework for an India–GCC free trade pact, reviving a process launched in 2004 that paused in 2011 after two negotiation rounds.
- Bilateral goods trade reached about $178.56 billion in FY2024–25, including $121.68 billion in imports and $56.87 billion in exports, led by roughly $100 billion with the UAE and nearly $42 billion with Saudi Arabia.
- Officials say a deal could bolster investment and jobs and strengthen food and energy security, with expected gains in food processing, infrastructure, petrochemicals and information and communications technology.
- India already has trade agreements with UAE (in force since May 2022) and Oman (CEPA signed on December 18, 2025), and an estimated 9–10 million Indians in the Gulf underpin deep economic ties.