Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal met Jordi Hereu, Spain's Minister of Industry and Tourism, in Madrid on 14 July to explore avenues for deepening India-Spain collaboration across trade, investment, manufacturing, innovation, and tourism. The bilateral meeting, held alongside the India-Spain Business Forum, centred on building resilient supply chains and accelerating economic cooperation ahead of the operationalisation of the India-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA).

The 10x Trade Vision

Goyal set an ambitious benchmark during the forum, calling on both nations to increase bilateral trade and investment tenfold over the next 10 years. He outlined four strategic levers to achieve this: investing deeper into each other's economies, leveraging the India-EU FTA, connecting tourism and talent pipelines, and strengthening government-to-government ties. Sectors flagged for greater collaboration include advanced manufacturing, mobility, railways, sustainability, innovation, and arts, science and culture.

India-EU FTA at the Centre

'We also exchanged views on the India-EU FTA and reaffirmed our commitment to strengthening industrial partnerships, building resilient supply chains and deepening economic cooperation for the mutual benefit of both nations,' Goyal said. He described the agreement as uniquely consensus-driven, noting that all 27 EU member states are aligned behind it — a rare degree of unity. 'This is perhaps the only free trade agreement that Europe has finalised without any criticism from any of the member states,' Goyal told business leaders in Madrid, adding that there was 'not a murmur of dissent or dissatisfaction back home in India' either.

Scale of the India-EU Economic Partnership

India and the European Union together account for nearly 30 per cent of global trade and the global economy, according to Goyal. He argued that the partnership holds the potential to expand significantly across trade, investment, culture, education, tourism, technology, space, and defence — sectors where both blocs have complementary strengths.

What Was Said at the Business Forum

'Delighted to deliver the keynote address at the India-Spain Business Forum. Underlined the need for encouraging the free flow of goods and services between India and Spain to achieve exponential growth in our trade and investment ties,' Goyal said. The forum brought together business leaders and government officials from both countries to identify near-term collaboration opportunities.

What Comes Next

The India-EU FTA, once operationalised, is expected to serve as the structural backbone for deepening India-Spain ties, given Spain's position as one of the EU's major economies. Industry observers note that the emphasis on resilient supply chains reflects a broader post-pandemic realignment of global trade routes, with India positioning itself as an alternative manufacturing hub. The coming months will test whether the forum's momentum translates into binding commitments and measurable investment flows.