In a key meeting aimed at strengthening trade and agro-industrial relations, a delegation of 23 leaders from the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)—as part of the official visit by India’s Commerce Secretary, Shri Rajesh Agrawal—was received at the headquarters of the Buenos Aires Grain Exchange.
The delegation was welcomed by the president of the host institution, Ricardo Marra, and by the head of the India-Argentina Business Council and of the Chamber of the Oilseed Industry and Cereals Exporters Center (CIARA-CEC), Gustavo Idígoras. Representatives of leading Indian-origin corporations based in the country (such as UPL, Advanta Seeds, Tata Group, and Sri Sri Tattva) took part in the meeting, along with directors of the Exporters Chamber (CERA), the Poultry Processing Companies Center (CEPA), the Pulses Chamber, the Argentine Seed Association (ASA), and agricultural machinery manufacturers.
Strategic alliance and the call for a free trade agreement
During the working session, Gustavo Idígoras highlighted the acceleration of bilateral trade and stressed the need to consolidate a long-term institutional economic integration between the two economies:
“The economic-commercial relationship with India has been growing year after year, with an increase in exports that reached 37% in 2025 and a trade surplus exceeding 4,000 million dollars. India is the world’s fourth-largest power and could surpass Germany by 2030. It is key and a priority that we have a long-term strategic relationship, and for that we must negotiate a free trade agreement between Mercosur and India similar to the one recently concluded with the European Union,” stated the president of CIARA-CEC.
As an institutional outcome of the meeting, the CII and the India-Argentina Business Council signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at channeling reciprocal investment flows, technological cooperation, and the development of new agro-industrial and manufacturing supply chains.
Opportunity for the oilseed complex: soybean and sunflower oils
During 2025, Argentina consolidated its position as the world’s leading supplier of vegetable oils to India, with an absolute predominance in shipments of crude soybean and sunflower oil processed at the country’s port terminals.
In light of the international situation, Idígoras underscored the growth prospects for the national oilseed complex:
“The growth potential of sales to India in oils remains positive; in particular, we can increase our presence with sunflower oil in this geopolitical context, while other traditional suppliers are engaged in an armed conflict such as that between Ukraine and Russia. Argentina is a fully peaceful country and a highly reliable supplier,” he emphasized.