Piyush Goyal asks Indian missions to help exporters deal with trade barriers

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal interacted with Heads of the Commercial Wings posted in 74 Indian Missions abroad across 61 countries on 16th July via video conference to review and strengthen India’s global trade and commercial engagement strategy.

During the meeting, key Indian Missions made detailed presentations on trade promotion activities, challenges in market access, and sectoral insights. The Minister acknowledged the Missions as the first point of contact for India’s commercial and economic diplomacy, underscoring their responsibility in promoting Indian exports and facilitating stronger engagement with host countries.

In his address, the Minister emphasised the need for Proactive trade intelligence gathering, including updates on market trends, sectoral developments, and regulatory frameworks. He called for sharing of innovative strategy and best practices that yielded good results in trade promotion and attracting investment into India.

Stating the need to focus on 4 KPIs i.e., Investment, Trade, Tourism and Technology, he termed regular dissemination of trade advisories as necessary to identify demand-supply gaps and opportunities for Indian exporters.

The Minister called for greater synergy among Missions, Export Promotion Councils (EPCs), and Indian industry stakeholders to achieve the nation’s ambition of becoming a global export powerhouse.

The minister’s address advised strategic interventions to address Market Access Barriers including Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs), Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS), and Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT); apart from enhanced alignment between Missions and the Department of Commerce through data-driven planning and effective use of digital platforms like the DGFT Trade Connect Portal.

The Minister stressed on collaborative efforts to support India’s objectives in multilateral forums such as the WTO, especially in key areas like agriculture, public stockholding for food security, and fisheries subsidies. The meeting also addressed operational and logistical challenges, including the need for adequate resources, efficient posting of commercial officers, and improved coordination to support initiatives under the Make in India and Production Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes.

He also called for the sharing of innovative strategy and best practices that yielded good results in trade promotion and attracting investment into India; and regular dissemination of trade advisories to identify demand-supply gaps and opportunities for Indian exporters.

India’s exports remained static at $35.14 billion in June due to prevailing global economic uncertainties, even as the trade deficit reduced to a four-month low of $18.78 billion during the month. From April to June in FY 2025-26, India’s exports increased 1.92% to $112.17 billion while imports rose 4.24% to $179.44 billion.