There are “strong complementarities” between India and Russia to further bolster trade and investment ties, experts attending the 26th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) said at a panel discussion titled ‘The Potential of Trade, Economic and Investment Cooperation Between Russia and India: A Development Scenario’.
The speakers of the panel discussion on India-Russia economic ties included Ksenia Komissarova, Chief Editor, TV BRICS International Media Network, Ashlesha Gowariker, a Partner at Desai & Diwanji, Rajnish Goenka, the founder-chairman of the MSME Development Forum, Ivan Nosov, Chief Manager of Sberbank’s India operations, Dmitry Pristanskov, the State Secretary – Vice President for Relations with Authorities and Administration at Norilsk Nickel, Mohit Singla, the Chairman of the Trade Promotion Council of India and Astha Tyagi, Vice-President at Invest India.
The speakers remarked that Russia was looking for “new suppliers of machinery, chemical and industrial components”, while India was looking to “become a manufacturing hub” and find new markets for its goods.
What's more, a growing number of Indian companies were entering the Russian market, especially in sectors such as pharmaceutical, Information and Technology (IT) and infrastructure industries.
They noted that India-Russia bilateral trade hit a record high in 2022-23 and neared $40 billionб, expressing confidence that trade level reaching $50 billion this year.
Russia has emerged as the top source of crude for India, surpassing its traditional suppliers in the Middle-east in terms of energy exports.
New Delhi has said that its crude suppliers from Moscow have contributed to keep domestic retail inflation under check amid a global volatility in fuel and food prices.
At the India-Russia Inter-governmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC)meeting in New Delhi in April, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov and Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar discussed ways to diversify the trade basket to encompass areas such as agriculture, transport, healthcare, education, and culture.
International North South Corridor Could Lower Shipping Costs
The panellists at St. Petersburg Forum said that the 7,200-km International North South Transport Corridor (INSTC), once fully operational, would bring down shipping costs and provide a further fillip to bilateral trade.
They also noted that many Russian companies had opened ‘Vostro’ accounts in Indian banks to carry out trade in local currencies, as businesses in two countries look to circumvent western sanctions to avoid trade-related disruptions.
They said that other adoption of other digital technologies, such as blockchain, could help in further reducing cross-border payments.
Speaking about the challenges in fostering greater India-Russia economic ties, the speakers concurred that many Indian companies weren’t fully cognizant of the “business opportunities” in Russia, with the same being the case for Russian companies in India.
“This is why it is necessary to strengthen dialogue between Russian and Indian businesses,” the panel heard.