&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "BRICS Business Forum begins in New Delhi as focus on trade, AI, finance and energy security. What to expect")
The BRICS Business Forum is underway in the national capital as part of the BRICS Summit 2026, bringing together business and government leaders from several member countries. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Union Minister Piyush Goyal and Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal are among the key speakers at the forum. Addressing the opening session, BRICS Business Council Chair Jai Shroff said India’s BRICS chairmanship under Prime Minister Narendra Modi has centred on four priorities, Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability, which he said are equally significant for governments and businesses.
“India’s BRICS chairmanship under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been built around four priorities: Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability. These are important priorities for the government, but equally relevant for business,” Shroff said while addressing the gathering here. Shroff also called for a broader understanding of BRICS, saying the grouping should be viewed not simply as a collection of major markets but as an interconnected economic network.
“We should not be looking at BRICS as a group of large markets but as an economic network where our strengths can reinforce one another. A resource in one BRICS economy can support manufacturing in another. A technology developed in one market can find scale in another. Capital can find projects and business can find new partners and customers across our economy,” Shorff said.
The BRICS Business Forum serves as the grouping’s principal platform for private-sector engagement. It is held annually in the country hosting the BRICS Summit, shortly before the Leaders’ meeting. The forum brings together leading business representatives, government ministers and heads of state to deliberate on key issues including trade, investment, finance, technology and sustainable economic development, all of which have a bearing on the BRICS agenda.
The platform also plays an important role in shaping the economic priorities of the grouping. It provides an opportunity for the BRICS Business Council to present its recommendations and private-sector perspectives to policymakers. Outcomes from the Business Forum, along with recommendations from the Business Council, can feed into BRICS Summit declarations and subsequent programmes of work. These include efforts to increase intra-BRICS trade and investment, strengthen the digital economy, support MSMEs, promote standards cooperation and deepen value-chain integration.
The main programme of the BRICS Summit is scheduled to begin on September 12, when leaders are expected to discuss initiatives under India’s presidency and ways to further strengthen the BRICS strategic partnership. India’s BRICS chairship has placed emphasis on international cooperation in areas including trade, digital technology, finance, energy security and reform of global governance institutions.
The summit is also expected to focus on resilient global supply chains, cross-border payment integration, increased use of national currencies, MSME development, digital trade and artificial intelligence. Energy security, climate resilience, development finance, expansion of the New Development Bank and reforms of multilateral financial and political institutions are also expected to feature prominently in the discussions.
