Piyush Goyal pitches for increasing engagements with US to open up opportunities for India

Sep 08, 2022

Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal on Wednesday (local time) pitched for increasing engagements with the US that will provide new opportunities to India for combating challenges in supply chains.

Addressing media at San Francisco he said, "The visit and engagements in the US will open up opportunities for us to work in partnership with each other, and ensure that during challenges supply chains remain open and businesses don't suffer and people of both the countries don't suffer."

Goyal is on a six-day visit to San Francisco and Los Angeles to attend the India-US Strategic Partnership Forum conference and Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) ministerial meeting.

Insisting on the importance of IPEF, he said, "Indo-Pacific Economic Framework brings together a group of friendly countries who collectively believe in the need to ensure that Indo-Pacific region remains secure and open for business."

He also highlighted strong business relations between India and the US. "We share strong business relations and the US is our largest trading partner. There is a lot of investment flow between the countries. The visit is a follow-up on our ties with the US," said Goyal.

India and US relations are strengthening by the day. The 2+2 ministerial dialogue has become very robust and vibrant.

"Our engagement in several areas is expanding. The leaders, businesses and people of both the countries are closer than ever before," said the Union Minister.

All the countries meeting for the IPEF ministerial have a lot to offer to each other in terms of trade, investment, technology etc and will be working together on all these fronts.

Underscoring India's economic stability, he said that India is an attractive destination for investment.

"India offers a huge market with 1.3 billion aspirational minds, honest governance, transparent economic policies, rule of law, media and judiciary to safeguard interests of the investor or anybody working with India, making India an attractive destination for investment," said Goyal.

"We have had record Foreign Direct Investment in India for the last 8 years. Last year we had the highest ever goods and services exports. Despite all the challenges, India continues to be a preferred trading partner and investment destination," he added.

He said that engagements with the US will provide Indians with increased job opportunities and will give thrust to India's economic activity.

"All of this will lead to the well-being of the people of India, providing them job opportunities, thrust to economic activity and growth which is very essential for our long term development. India's increasing international engagements and trade ties are leading to more employment opportunities and greater economic activity," said Goyal.