India to remain fastest-growing economy, trade talks with US on track: Piyush Goyal

India is an attractive investment destination and has the potential to remain the fastest-growing large economy in the world for the next 30 years, Union Minister for Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal, has said.

Goyal said the country has maintained sustained growth of 6–7 per cent and hopes to push it to 8 per cent at constant prices.

Speaking at the CII ‘Annual Business Summit 2025’ here, the minister said that even amid international upheavals, “we are among the better-performing emerging markets”.

“Today, India holds the 4th largest foreign exchange reserves in the world at about $690 billion. Our inflation has remained below 4 per cent for the last three months. The Reserve Bank has done a commendable job balancing liquidity and currency management,” he told the gathering.

Goyal highlighted India as an attractive investment destination. “Over the past 20–25 years, Indian companies have delivered nearly 20 per cent CAGR returns, making India a compulsive investment destination. FDI inflows are consistently breaking records. We are back on track on the growth trajectory, working through international trading relations,” he added.

The minister cited progress on various Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), including those with the UAE, Australia, the UK, the four EFTA countries (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland), and the ongoing bilateral trade agreement negotiations with the US.

“We are well on track with our bilateral trade agreement with the USA and making fast progress with the European Union’s 27-nation bloc. We have also launched negotiations with New Zealand,” he stated.

The EFTA countries have committed $100 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) to India over the next 15 years. This is expected to crystallise into a total investment of $500 billion.

Furthermore, the large ecosystem that will be created around this investment has the potential to attract an additional $500 billion. “We are not aiming small,” said Goyal, emphasising that this figure does not include investments from the Norwegian Pension Fund and represents pure FDI.

He further highlighted that this is the first Free Trade Agreement (FTA) in the world to include such a forward-looking investment clause.

Goyal expressed pride at India’s continued economic progress and stated that the IMF has projected that by 2027, India will be the world’s third largest GDP. He added that despite global volatility, uncertainty and complexity, India remains the fastest-growing economy and continues to power global growth through growth in India.

The minister underlined that growth through trade, resilient supply chains and innovation would remain incomplete without inclusive growth.