From Bollywood to Tel Aviv! India and Israel have taken their partnership to an even greater extent. Both countries have agreed to a Bilateral Investment Agreement, which was signed by Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.
The Bilateral Trade Agreement signed on Monday is primarily aimed at increasing bilateral investments between the two countries. India-Israel have currently invested around $800 million as investments, which is aimed to increase thanks to this agreement. According to the joint statement issued it said the agreement will “provide greater certainty and protection for investors, facilitating growth of trade and mutual investments by ensuring a minimum standard of treatment, and an independent dispute resolution mechanism through arbitration.”
India is now going all guns blazing to sign Free Trade Agreements with most of its trade partners. This year itself, India has signed a Free Trade Agreement with the United Kingdom, is in advanced talks with the EU. Meanwhile, Israel is the latest one on the list since the Israeli Finance Minister said he talked to Piyush Goyal about the same.
👉 Government of India and Government of the State of Israel sign Bilateral Investment Agreement (BIA), in New Delhi, today
— Ministry of Finance (@FinMinIndia) September 8, 2025
👉 Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Smt. @nsitharaman and Finance Minister of Israel H.E. Mr. Bezalel Smotrich signed the BIA
👉… pic.twitter.com/XgL6GFBEMV
What Is the Trade Volume Between India and Israel?
Bilateral trade between India and Israel has increased significantly. According to government figures, bilateral trade in the FY 25 was 3 billion dollars between the countries. This included India exporting goods worth 2.15 billion dollars to Israel, meanwhile importing goods worth 1.61 billion dollars. The primary chunk of exports to Israel includes precious pearls, rice, electronics, telecom instruments, and cotton. Whereas the goods imported from Israel include precious stones, fertilizers, agro-chemicals and engineering-related products.
What Did the Indian and Israeli Finance Ministers Say?
The Israeli Finance Minister stressed the need for increased collaboration between the countries. The areas that need immediate attention are Cybersecurity, defence, and other technology-intensive industries, he added. Meanwhile, the Indian Finance Minister said about what reforms India has taken in these areas, along with offering condolences on the terrorist attack in Jerusalem. She said, expressing her concern that “shared value of the civilizational ethos” is the thing that the two countries in their contribution to global peace.
Future of Bilateral Trade?
Both the Finance Ministers have claimed active participation and co-operation for signing a trade agreement. Meanwhile, they will strive to create an investment environment that weathers all challenges. Along with this they mentioned increased collaboration in Fintech Innovation, agriculture improvements, and infrastructure development.