BRICS summit in New Delhi tests consensus on trade, payments and governance reform

Declaration remains the immediate test

The 18th BRICS Summit opened at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on September 12 and is scheduled to continue through September 13. India, in its fourth BRICS chairship, is hosting representatives of Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates. As of September 12, the final New Delhi Declaration had not been independently verified. South Africa’s government said summit sessions were intended to produce a declaration, making agreement among the expanded, consensus-based group a measurable near-term outcome. India’s Press Information Bureau says the meeting is the 18th leaders’ summit and coincides with 20 years since BRIC cooperation began in 2006.

The agenda covers trade, investment, energy, food security, technology, supply chains, development finance, institutional reform and wider use of national currencies in cross-border trade. The Associated Press reported that the meeting is taking place amid the Russia-Ukraine war, the Iran conflict, trade barriers and U.S.-China competition. It remains uncertain whether the declaration will adopt specific language on Ukraine or Iran.

India puts the members’ combined weight at 49.5% of the global population, 40% of global GDP and 26% of global trade. The GDP figure requires qualification because the official summary does not specify whether it is based on purchasing-power parity or nominal output. The group’s scale supports its ability to press for changes at the IMF, World Bank and United Nations, while consensus requirements and member disagreements can limit coordinated action.

India proposes implementation measures

Prime Minister Narendra Modi proposed a BRICS Continuity and Implementation Mechanism on September 12, including a secure repository that would record responsible officials, deadlines and implementation status. He also proposed a ten-point BRICS Reform Roadmap before the next summit and a Seafarers Emergency Support Network, according to the Prime Minister’s Office. Collective approval, funding and operating terms for these measures have not been verified.

At the September 11 BRICS Business Forum, Modi asked the BRICS Business Council to identify ten major trade barriers, help 100 startups annually enter other BRICS markets and develop 1,000 business partnerships. These are Indian targets rather than confirmed group commitments, according to the Prime Minister’s Office record. An agreed tracking system could make annual commitments easier to assess if members accept deadlines, report progress and allocate national resources.

Payments and development finance have defined limits

National-currency settlement is under discussion, but no verified timetable, technical architecture or regulatory framework has been announced for a BRICS cross-border payment system. Such arrangements could reduce exchange costs and selected members’ exposure to sanctions or dollar funding constraints. They do not establish a common BRICS currency. The IMF reported that the dollar accounted for 57.13% of global foreign-exchange reserves in the first quarter of 2026, compared with 1.99% for China’s renminbi, in its currency-reserves data brief.

The New Development Bank provides an existing institutional channel for BRICS development finance. By June 30, 2026, it had approved 141 projects totaling $44 billion and disbursed $25 billion, the bank said in opening remarks by its vice president and chief operating officer. Its future capitalization, membership expansion and capacity to lend to heavily sanctioned members remain unresolved.

Xi Jinping’s visit is his first trip to India in about seven years, and a Modi-Xi meeting is expected to assess the recent easing of tensions after the countries’ deadly 2020 border confrontation. Attendance and bilateral talks do not establish resolution of border, investment or trade disputes.