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India, France expand strategic economic dialogue in Paris
She highlighted AI, clean energy, healthcare and digital infrastructure as major investment opportunities.
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Ankita Baidya - Fri, 03, Jul 2026
- 03:15 EDT
- 20
Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman. / Photo: IANS/Prem Nath Pandey
Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met leaders of major French companies and financial institutions at an India-France Business Roundtable in Paris, pitching India as a destination for long-term investment across technology, manufacturing, healthcare and clean energy.
Also read: Indian Embassy takes tax reform outreach to Paris
According to the Ministry of Finance, Sitharaman told participants that the India-France strategic partnership is well positioned to drive the next phase of sustainable, innovation-led growth as the global economy adapts to technological advances, supply chain diversification, the energy transition and geopolitical shifts.
She described India and France as trusted partners in building the global artificial intelligence ecosystem, highlighting opportunities in trustworthy AI, digital infrastructure and next-generation technologies.
The minister noted that bilateral trade between India and France has doubled over the past decade and said nearly 1,000 French companies now operate in India. She also highlighted India's digital public infrastructure—including Aadhaar, UPI, DigiLocker, ONDC and India Stack—which she said powers nearly half of the world's real-time digital payment transactions.
Sitharaman identified healthcare, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology as key sectors for investment, pointing to India's strengths in vaccine manufacturing, active pharmaceutical ingredients, clinical research, precision medicine and digital health. She also highlighted opportunities created by India's clean energy transition, including its target of achieving 500 GW of non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030, the National Green Hydrogen Mission and Production Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes supporting renewable energy, battery storage, offshore wind and smart grid development.
She also outlined developments at the International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) in Gujarat, saying it has grown to more than 1,200 registered entities with banking assets of $111 billion and cumulative banking transactions of $176 billion as of June 2026. Sitharaman further highlighted the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund's planned Infrastructure Fund II and Private Markets Fund II, which will focus on infrastructure, digital infrastructure and energy transition projects.
La ministre de l'Union chargée des Finances et des Affaires de l'entreprise, Mme Nirmala Sitharaman @nsitharaman, a participé aujourd'hui à Paris à une table ronde d'affaires Inde-France avec de grandes entreprises et institutions françaises.
— India in France (@IndiaembFrance) July 2, 2026
Dressant le contexte d'une économie… https://t.co/ClGTfWU4k7
Inviting French businesses to partner with India's Viksit Bharat 2047 development vision, Sitharaman said the country's ongoing economic reforms and expanding investment ecosystem offer significant long-term opportunities.
According to the Indian Embassy in France, representatives of leading French financial institutions participating in the roundtable discussed their existing operations in India and shared perspectives on expanding bilateral investment and commercial cooperation.
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