External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday met Brazilian President Jair Messias Bolsonaro and discussed ways to deepen ties between the two countries in a range of areas, including trade and investment.
Later in the day, Mr. Bolsonaro and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold extensive talks following which the two countries are expected to ink 15 agreements to boost cooperation in a wide-range of areas like oil and gas, mining and cyber security.
Mr. Bolsonaro arrived here on Friday, accompanied by his daughter Laura Bolsonaro, daughter-in-law Leticia Firmo, eight ministers, four members of the Brazilian parliament and a large business delegation.
Mr. Bolsonaro and Mr. Jaishankar deliberated on ways to deepen overall bilateral cooperation including in areas like trade and investment, officials said.
The Brazilian president is in India primarily to grace the Republic Day celebrations on Sunday as chief guest and explore ways to boost trade ties with India at a time when both the large economies are hit by slowdowns.
India’s ties with Brazil, the largest country in Latin America, has been on an upswing in the last few years. The country has a population of 210 million with $1.8 trillion economy.
This is the first visit of President Bolsonaro to India.
Mr. Bolsonaro, a former army captain, won a landslide victory in Brazil’s presidential election in October 2018 and took the reins of the country in January last year.
India-Brazil ties have been on an upswing in the last few years.
The volume of bilateral trade was $8.2 billion in 2018-19. This included $3.8 billion worth of Indian exports to Brazil and $4.4 million as imports by India.
Both the governments feel there is huge potential to enhance the bilateral trade further.
Major Indian exports to Brazil include agro-chemicals, synthetic yarns, auto components and parts, pharmaceutical and petroleum products. Brazilian exports to India include crude oil, gold, vegetable oil, sugar and bulk mineral and ores.
Indian investments in Brazil were around $6 billion and Brazilian investments in India are estimated at $1 billion in 2018.
Brazilian investments in India are mainly in automobiles, IT, mining, energy and biofuel sectors. India has invested in Brazil’s IT, pharmaceutical, energy, agri-business, mining and engineering sectors.
