Indian Prime Minister Modi launched the Bharatiya Janata Party membership event in New Delhi, India on September 2, 2024.
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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong this week, his first visit to the city-state since being re-elected for a historic third term in June.
During the two-day visit, Modi will also meet Singaporean President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, State Counselor and former Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Honorary State Counselor Goh Chok Tong.
“Singapore has always been a friend of India in the region and has always advocated a partnership with India,” Anit Mukherjee, a senior lecturer at King's College London, told CNBC. “India hopes to emulate this with other countries in the region. An exemplary bilateral partnership.”
This country is Indian Sixth largest trading partneraccounting for 3.2% of India's total trade. In fiscal year 2024, Singapore's total imports were US$21.2 billion and total exports were US$14.4 billion.
Asia's largest financial center is also India's largest source of foreign direct investment. Cumulative FDI inflows from Singapore to India were Nearly $160 billion between April 2000 and March 2024accounting for almost a quarter of total foreign direct investment flowing into the South Asian country.
Mukherjee added that after Modi visits other continents this year, he hopes to “emphasize that he is not neglecting Southeast Asia.”
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi inspects the guard of honor when arriving at Brunei International Airport in Bandar Seri Begawan on September 3, 2024.
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Earlier this week, the Prime Minister of India spoke First trip to Brunei There he met Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah. Modi is the first Indian prime minister to make a bilateral visit to the oil-rich country.
During the visit, Modi inaugurated the new office building of the Indian High Commission in Brunei Darussalam and visited the Omar Ali Saifuddin Mosque in Bandar Seri Begawan.
The Indian Prime Minister also visited Italy for the G7 summit, Russia, Ukraine and Poland within three months of his re-election.
Already on the agenda
It's been nearly six years since Modi visited Singapore and political observers expect a number of agreements to be signed between the two countries, particularly in finance and manufacturing.
“India-Singapore relations have always been stable and strong. It is now expected to enter the next phase of cooperation, which will be economic and strategic cooperation based on areas of long-term interest,” said Amitendu Palit, senior fellow, trade and economics fellow and research fellow at the South Asia Institute The person in charge told CNBC.
Late last month, four Indian ministers including Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar attended a meeting ministerial roundtable Meeting with Singapore Minister Wong and Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan in the Lion City.
The ministers discussed how to strengthen bilateral cooperation in areas such as advanced manufacturing, trade, investment and digitalization.
Balakrishnan was interviewed by reporters after the meeting explain Semiconductor manufacturing is an important area of focus.
“They know that although Singapore is small, we have a disproportionate share of global semiconductor manufacturing capacity, and they are taking a close look at our ecosystem,” he said.
Political analysts told CNBC that any results from the meeting are likely to be announced during Modi's visit.
“There will be some further measures announced in the area of mutual cooperation. I expect quite a few of them to be in the financial, technology and commercial areas. They have been the cornerstone of India-Singapore business,” he said.
For example, payment links between PayNow in Singapore and Unified Payments Interface in India Since 2023, people in both countries will be able to send and receive funds instantly between bank accounts.
“More plans like this are likely to be announced. Even if not announced, the first steps in cooperation will be firmly embedded in the upcoming meetings,” Pallett predicts.
He added that major trade announcements between the two countries were unlikely.
“Trading relations are already very stable. Singapore is not only an important bilateral partner for India's trade, but also India's gateway to the Asia-Pacific and Southeast Asia.”