Minister Piyush Goyal highlights high-level meetings undertaken to deepen trade and investment with various countries
New Delhi, May 22
Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday highlighted a series of trade, logistics and manufacturing-related initiatives undertaken by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry over the past week, signalling the government's continued focus on strengthening India's global trade position, industrial growth and ease of doing business.
In a post on X, the minister said the government engaged in "high-level bilateral meetings with Chile, Oman, Netherlands, Maldives, Germany and Egypt to deepen trade, investment and strategic cooperation."
The engagements come at a time when India is seeking to strengthen economic ties with key global partners while expanding export opportunities and attracting investments across sectors. The discussions were aimed at enhancing cooperation in trade, investment and strategic economic partnerships amid evolving global economic conditions.
The minister also said several meetings were held in Mumbai focused on strengthening "integrated institutional coordination, service delivery, food safety systems and export quality assurance."
These discussions form part of the government's broader efforts to improve regulatory coordination and enhance export competitiveness by strengthening quality assurance systems and food safety infrastructure.
Highlighting manufacturing and export-oriented initiatives, Goyal said the ministry conducted key review meetings to accelerate "seafood exports, local manufacturing, value addition and employment generation under the SCALE roadmap."
The review meetings focused on promoting domestic manufacturing capabilities, improving value addition and supporting sectors with export potential to generate employment opportunities and strengthen industrial growth.
On logistics and infrastructure reforms, the minister said the government released the LEADS Report 2025 and presented the LEAPS Awards 2025 to strengthen "logistics efficiency, PM GatiShakti integration and ease of doing business."
The LEADS Report evaluates logistics performance across states and Union Territories, while the LEAPS Awards recognise initiatives aimed at improving logistics efficiency and supply chain infrastructure. The initiatives are aligned with the government's broader PM GatiShakti programme, which focuses on integrated infrastructure planning and reducing logistics costs.
The minister also highlighted that India's exports registered a 13.59 per cent growth in April 2026 despite global headwinds, reaching USD 80.80 billion compared to USD 71.13 billion in April 2025.
The developments reflect the government's ongoing focus on strengthening exports, improving logistics infrastructure, deepening international trade engagement and promoting manufacturing-led economic growth.
— ANI
Reader Comments
As someone working in logistics, the LEADS Report and PM GatiShakti integration is a game-changer. Reducing logistics cost from 14% to single digits will make our exports way more competitive. Hope the states take the report seriously and improve infrastructure in Tier-2 cities too.
While the initiatives sound promising, I hope the benefits reach the small-scale exporters and farmers. Often, these high-level agreements don't translate to ground-level reality for our local seafood exporters and textile manufacturers. Need more transparency in implementation.
Interesting to see meetings with Germany and Netherlands alongside Maldives and Oman. India is balancing both developed and developing country partnerships well. The focus on food safety systems is particularly important for accessing European markets - quality compliance is a major hurdle.
That 13.59% growth in exports is a good sign, but we need to look at the trade deficit too. The government should focus on reducing import dependency, especially in oil and electronics. Make in India must become a reality, not just a slogan. Hope the SCALE roadmap delivers on local manufacturing jobs.
As an NRI, I'm proud to see India taking proactive steps. The integrated institutional coordination mentioned is crucial - too often departments work in silos. If we can streamline customs and regulatory processes across states, our export competitiveness will skyrocket. Chandrika! 💪
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