Experts on Saturday endorsed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's remarks on the growing significance of BRICS economies, asserting that the bloc has emerged as a major engine of global growth with substantial potential to deepen trade, investment, and multilateral cooperation. The endorsement comes ahead of intensified engagement among BRICS member states on trade and bilateral commerce.

Former Commerce Secretary backs Modi's stance

Former Commerce Secretary Ajay Dua said the Prime Minister's assessment was 'absolutely correct,' noting that while the global economy has expanded at an average rate of roughly 3.5 per cent annually over the past decade, BRICS nations — particularly India and China — have recorded significantly higher growth rates.

'I think what the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said is absolutely correct. While the world has grown at about three-and-a-half per cent annually in the last ten years or so, the average of the BRICS countries, particularly India, has been very much higher,' Dua said.

However, he cautioned that achieving greater economic self-reliance remains a complex challenge for individual nations. 'If you talk about individual countries becoming more self-reliant, that is always more difficult. We have experienced ourselves that for Make in India or Indian self-sufficiency, particularly in manufacturing, the progress has been sectoral and not across the board,' he added.

BRICS economic weight in numbers

Lakshmi Narayanan, Chairman of SWFI, highlighted the grouping's expanding economic footprint. According to Narayanan, BRICS economies together account for nearly $33 trillion in GDP — approximately 27 per cent of the global economy. On a purchasing power parity (PPP) basis, the combined economic strength of BRICS and allied nations is estimated at about $82 trillion, reportedly exceeding that of the G20.

Narayanan said trade and commerce are expected to dominate upcoming BRICS discussions, especially as member countries have been affected by global trade disruptions. 'The core focus will be on trade and commerce and bilateral trade because all the BRICS countries have been impacted. That, I expect, will be one of the key outcomes,' he said.

Trillion-dollar investment ambition

From the iBRICS perspective, Narayanan outlined a target of facilitating investments worth $1 trillion into the BRICS economy to support development and strengthen economic cooperation among member nations. This comes amid heightened global uncertainty, with trade tensions and tariff escalations disrupting established supply chains — a context that makes intra-BRICS trade corridors increasingly relevant.

UN underscores multilateral cooperation

Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General, emphasised the importance of constructive engagement among nations. 'From the Secretary-General's point of view, the important thing is intense multilateralism. What we need to see is countries reaching positive deals between regional blocs and between countries, which can help lower tensions that naturally exist at times,' Dujarric said.

He added that BRICS, given its substantial share of the global population and economic output, has an important role to play in promoting dialogue and international cooperation.

Why this matters

The BRICS grouping — comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, along with newer entrants — has steadily grown in geopolitical and economic significance. Notably, the bloc's share of global GDP on a PPP basis has overtaken that of the G7 in recent years, a shift that underlines the rebalancing of global economic power. Yet challenges persist: intra-BRICS trade as a proportion of each member's total commerce remains modest, and institutional mechanisms for dispute resolution and financial clearing lag behind those of Western-led blocs. Whether the grouping can translate its aggregate size into coordinated economic leverage remains the central question heading into the next summit cycle.