BRICS 2026: From bigger to better? The New Delhi summit may put trade, tech and energy in focus
BRICS 2026 will test whether the expanded 11-member grouping can translate its growing economic and geopolitical weight into practical cooperation. With trade, payments, startups, AI, energy, critical minerals and climate finance on the agenda, India’s presidency faces a tougher challenge: building consensus among members whose strategic interests often diverge.
New Delhi is preparing to host an expanded BRICS summit focused on practical cooperation in trade, technology, and energy. With members spanning Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Indonesia, BRICS now holds significant global influence. India's chairmanship aims to transform the forum from a political assembly into one capable of delivering tangible results.
One key priority is streamlining trade within the BRICS bloc. India is working on a Global Value Chains Action Plan to strengthen trade corridors, reduce transaction costs, and improve customs procedures. India also proposes an invoice-discounting mechanism to ease trade-finance constraints for small and medium enterprises and a BRICS MSME Cooperation Portal. Supply chain resilience is expected to be a major focus, with the potential creation of a BRICS Logistics Supply-Chain Cooperation Framework.
Technology, particularly artificial intelligence and startups, will be another major area of focus. India plans to establish a BRICS Startup Innovation Fund and a Digital Public Infrastructure Repository to share knowledge and test scalable solutions. Energy cooperation is also expected to be a key topic, given the diverse energy profiles of the member states. India aims to balance energy security with a transition to cleaner energy sources.
Written by urgent.news from The Economic Times - Economy's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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