Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal urged BRICS members and partner countries to link their payment systems and conduct trade in local currencies at the BRICS Business Forum 2026. He highlighted that BRICS cooperation can create jobs, wealth, and prosperity for countries representing half of mankind and 40% of global GDP. Goyal emphasized the need for deep, resilient, and diversified trade among partners, without making trade an impediment to growth or wellbeing. The Commerce Minister also called for opening markets to each other's products and simplifying regulatory procedures.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-11,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosted the 18th BRICS summit in New Delhi, welcoming leaders from China and Russia among others. The summit marks a significant moment for India as it seeks to strengthen ties with both traditional allies like the US and new partners such as China, despite ongoing tensions over issues like trade and the border dispute. With BRICS expanding to 11 members, including Brazil, South Africa, Indonesia, and Egypt, internal divisions are becoming more pronounced. Chinese President Xi Jinping, in his first visit to India since 2019, called for mutual learning and cooperation between China and India during bilateral talks on the summit's sidelines. Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal urged BRICS nations to link payment systems and trade in local currencies to reduce dependence on dominant global financial powers. As BRICS members discuss economic and geopolitical strategies, they face challenges of aligning diverse interests while attempting to establish a counterbalance to American-led global order.
Written for “BRICS Summit India” on 2026-09-12,
grounded in this article and the 16 other(s) covering the same event.
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The model judged this article politically coded and scored it +0.60, but none of the 2 quote(s) it offered could be found in the article text, so the score is not published.
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Leaning score withheld for article 8057: no verified evidence · logged 2026-09-11
Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday (September 11, 2026) urged the gathered BRICS members and partner countries to link their payment systems and conduct more trade in local currencies.
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Goyal → urge → currencies
Speaking at the inaugural session of the BRICS Business Forum 2026, Mr. Goyal highlighted that BRICS cooperation would create jobs, wealth and prosperity for countries that represent half of mankind and 40% of the global gross domestic product (GDP).
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that → speak → product
Also read: BRICS Summit 2026 LIVE updates
“BRICS today represents almost one-fourth of global trade, and India is an important pillar of intra-BRICS trade,” Mr. Goyal said.
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Goyal → read → trade
“Engineering goods and electronics account for the largest segment of India’s manufactured exports.
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goods → engineer → exports
India is also known as the pharmacy of the world.”
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India → know → world
Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar, also speaking at the event, said that higher economic security means greater self-reliance while also remaining inter-connected.
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security → speak → reliance
“The objective is to strengthen our ability to absorb shocks while remaining connected and competitive,” Mr. Jaishankar said.
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Jaishankar → strengthen → shocks
“That calls for genuine market practices, predictable business environment, diversified commercial relationships, and transparent trade and industry.
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That → call → practices
“It also calls for energy systems capable of coping with disruption and transition pathways, which are suited to different national circumstances,” he added.
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he → call → circumstances
Without naming any one particular currency or nation, Mr. Goyal spoke about enhancing local currency trade and also how trade should at no point become an impediment to growth.
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trade → name → growth
“We believe trade among partners should be deep, resilient, with diversified supply chains, and ensuring that at no point of time does trade become an impediment to growth and the wellbeing of the people of each member state,” he said.
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he → believe → state
“I would urge the BRICS member countries and partner countries to link our payment systems, trade in each other’s local currencies, make digital trade global and build together for the future,” Mr. Goyal added.
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Goyal → urge → future
The Commerce Minister also urged the gathered BRICS leaders to open their markets to each other’s products, including raw materials and critical minerals, and to work together to simplify regulatory procedures and facilitate faster clearance of consignments.
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Minister → urge → consignments
Areas of BRICS collaboration
Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Jitin Prasada, also speaking at the session, pitched for greater collaboration in the areas of digital services, artificial intelligence, semiconductors, among other technology-oriented sectors.
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Prasada → speak → sectors
“The other issue that I would like to highlight is about data centres, which have become so critical and will be more important in our lives to come,” Mr. Prasada said.
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Prasada → like → lives
“Each country has to ensure the availability of green power and the best practices to ensure that our technologies and our economy remain within our own boundaries, as far as data goes with regard to this technology of artificial intelligence and hyperscale data centres.”
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data → have → intelligence
The Russian Minister of Economic Development, Maxim Reshetnikov, spoke of another area where the BRICS countries could collaborate — a BRICS grain exchange.
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countries → speak → area
“BRICS countries are among the world’s leading producers and consumers, but we still rely on price benchmarks that reflect the interests of entirely different markets,” Mr. Reshetnikov said.
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Reshetnikov → lead → markets
“We urgently need an independent mechanism for strategic agricultural commodities.”
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We → need → commodities
“Russia prepared a detailed plan to establish the BRICS grain exchange,” he added.
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he → prepare → exchange
“It’s a unified trading platform where producers, traders and buyers can conclude transactions directly.
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producers → ’ → transactions
We call upon partner feedback at the public and private level.”
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We → call → level
He also called for greater BRICS cooperation in the area of Special Economic Zones, saying that while each member country has used them to great effect individually, now was the time to work together to create such joint economic zones.
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time → call → zones
