India and Brunei Review Trade Ties, Identify New Areas for Economic Cooperation

Ø Discussions Focus on Expanding Bilateral Trade, Improving Market Access and Facilitating Business-to-Business Exchanges

· India and Brunei Darussalam held the third Joint Trade Committee (JTC) meeting to review bilateral trade and economic cooperation and explore opportunities to strengthen commercial relations.

· Discussions focused on expanding bilateral trade, improving market access, facilitating business-to-business exchanges and promoting exports of Indian agricultural and animal products to Brunei.

· Pharmaceuticals, healthcare and energy were identified as key sectors for enhanced cooperation, including regulatory collaboration, procurement and healthcare services.

· Both sides explored opportunities in traditional and emerging energy partnerships to support industrial growth.

· The countries agreed to strengthen tourism, trade fairs, exhibitions and reciprocal business delegations to identify investment opportunities in manufacturing, infrastructure and services.

· Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to regular communication between relevant agencies and working groups to monitor progress on agreed initiatives.

· The next Joint Trade Committee meeting will be held in Brunei Darussalam, continuing efforts to deepen bilateral trade and investment relations.

[ABS News Service/15.10.2026]

The third meeting of the India–Brunei Darussalam Joint Trade Committee (JTC) was convened to review bilateral trade and economic cooperation and identify avenues for strengthening commercial ties between the two countries. The meeting was co-chaired by Joint Secretary, Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, India, Amit Verma, and Permanent Secretary (Economy & Trade), Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Brunei Darussalam, Dr. May Fa'ezah Ahmad Ariffin. Representatives from relevant Ministries, Departments and organisations of both countries participated in the deliberations.

The discussions focused on expanding bilateral trade, addressing market access priorities and identifying institutional mechanisms to facilitate business-to-business exchanges. Both sides also deliberated on facilitating exports of agricultural and animal products from India to Brunei Darussalam, with a view to supporting food security and diversifying trade.

Pharmaceuticals, healthcare and energy were identified as key areas for further cooperation. Both sides explored opportunities for regulatory collaboration, procurement and healthcare services, recognising the potential for greater engagement in the pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors. Discussions on energy covered traditional and emerging energy partnerships to support sustained industrial growth.

The two sides also emphasised the importance of strengthening people-to-people ties and commercial outreach through cooperation in tourism and participation in trade fairs and exhibitions. They noted that targeted trade promotion events and reciprocal business delegations could help identify investment opportunities in manufacturing, infrastructure and services.

Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to maintaining regular communication between relevant nodal agencies and working groups to monitor follow-up actions and advance the trade and investment objectives discussed during the meeting.

The next meeting of the India–Brunei Darussalam Joint Trade Committee will be held in Brunei Darussalam.