India’s exports to Qatar jump 87% in 2018

India has recorded an 87% jump in exports to Qatar in one year from April 2017 to March 2018, reaching nearly $1.5bn according to the country’s envoy. In the previous year, Indian exports to Qatar had totalled close to $800mn, P Kumaran told Gulf Times yesterday on the sidelines of a business meeting between Qatari companies and an Indian trade delegation at the Qatar Chamber.The Indian trade delegation was led by K-flex India Company CEO Triviyan K Kalra.The delegation met with Qatar Chamber first vice chairman Mohamed bin Towar al-Kuwari and second vice chairman Rashid bin Hamad al-Athba, as well as other chamber officials and member companies.“Our analysis showed that the main increase was in the area of food and food products, iron and steel, aluminium, and transport machines and cars from Suzuki and Tata Motors,” the ambassador said.In the next 12 years, Kumaran said India needs around $2tn in investments for various infrastructure development projects, adding that Qatar is welcome to participate in various projects in different sectors.“We welcome investments from everyone. Being a big investor and an active investor abroad, we also welcome Qatari investments in the Indian sector. Given our growth rate of 7% to 8% – the fastest growing major economy in the world – I think the opportunity for good returns above other most economies is high,” he pointed out.The ambassador said Qatari investments could be used to develop sectors such as oil and gas, power, infrastructure, food and food processing, agro-port development, airport development, and MRO (maintenance, repair, and operations).“We are going to develop new airports in the next few years; the number of planes being ordered per year by Indian airline companies is probably the highest in the world…so there are so many different sectors of the economy that offer opportunities,” he continued.He added: “We look forward to some roadshows by Qatar. We had a discussion with Mr Ahmad bin Mohamed al-Sayed, the chairman of Qatar’s Free Zones Authority, and we understand that once the bylaws are firmed up, he would be very much interested in talking to Indian companies.”According to al-Kuwari, there are 24 fully-owned Indian companies in Qatar and an estimated 6,000 Qatar-India joint ventures operating in the country’s infrastructure, ICT, and energy sectors, among other fields. He said Qatar-India trade stood at more than $10bn last year, adding that India is the “third largest” export destination of Qatari products.Kalra underscored trade opportunities in India that could attract Qatari investors.