Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Dilva, left, greets Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the start of a trip that saw the two leaders’ agree to grow business between their countries to more than $20 billion per year. Photo by Narendra Modi/X
Leaders from Brazil and India agreed on Saturday to increase bilateral trade between the two countries, including a deal for rare earth elements, which are essential for production of certain electronics.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Dilva agreed boost trade between their countries to beyond the $20 billion level over the next five years as the they look to “deepen” trade ties between them, Anadolu Ajansi reported.
Additionally, the leaders also agreed on a framework deal for rare Earth’s, which Bloomberg reported will help India reduce its reliance on China for the minerals, which are critical for electronics, clean energy and defense production.
Lula, who arrived in New Dheli on Wednesday for a state visit, has also participated in India’s AI summit and a Brazil-India Business Forum, amid meetings with Modi and other Indian leaders.
“Our conversations focused on ways to deepen the commercial partnership between India and Brazil,” Modi said in a post on X. “We are committed to taking bilateral trade far beyond US $20 billion in the next five years.”
In a string of posts after concluding meetings, Modi said the two countries plan to “work closely together” in a wide range of areas, including technology, public digital infrastructure, artificial intelligence, energy and agriculture, among other industries.
A Índia tem a honra de receber o Presidente Lula e sua delegação, que inclui ministros ilustres e líderes empresariais. As relações entre Índia e Brasil têm se beneficiado há muito tempo da visão e da liderança inspiradora do Presidente Lula. Sua presença na Cúpula de IA também… pic.twitter.com/8qIYUvv5dJ— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 21, 2026
In a series of his own posts on X, Lula noted that bilateral trade between the two countries has grown from $2.4 billion in 2006 to $15.2 billion in 2025.
“It is a great growth, but it is still little considering the size of India and Brazil,” Lula said, adding that while he and Modi agreed to reaching $20 billion of trade, he said he already thinks the target could be revised to $30 billion.
Lula said the deals that India and Brazil have made during the last several days, as well as his participation in several forums and meetings, will benefit businesses in both countries and an agreed upon extension of business and tourist visas — from 5 years to 10 years — will only help to encourage more growth.
“Mutual interest is growing,” Lula said. “More than 100 Brazilian business missions visited India in the last three years. … The agreements we signed today open up many possibilities for cooperation.”
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