New Delhi: Saudi Crown Prince and newly appointed Prime Minister of the Kingdom, Mohammed bin Salman is expected to be in New Delhi for a short one-day visit on November 14.
According to the newswire agency ANI, the Saudi Crown Prince will meet PM Modi, EAM Dr. S Jaishankar, and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, before heading to Bali for G20 Leaders Summit.
However, the program of the visit is still evolving and there is no formal announcement of the visit.
Trade between the countries stands at nearly USD 43 billion this year. The sources close to ANI added that India is looking for more exports to the kingdom, Saudi is already a big market for textile and Indian footwear. Trade and investment is likely to be the key talking point during the visit.
Talks on the formation of mutual halal certification agencies to stop misuse and undersea power transmission lines from Saudi to India are also progressing. Deliberation is also taking place on institutionalizing the Rupee-Riyal trade, and the introduction of UPI and Rupay cards.
The Russia-Ukraine conflict has led to a massive jump in global inflation led by spiraling oil prices. Saudi is a major oil exporter to India and New Delhi will be hoping for some relief in this aspect.
Saudi-led OPEC is already under fire for cutting oil production from November onwards. The United States says it is a political move and many experts say that this will lead to a further increase in global inflation.
(With Agency Inputs)