Goyal Urges Auto Component Industry to Go Global
Minister calls for global expansion, stronger supply chains and higher-value products as auto sector posts strong growth
GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 2nd Sept: Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday called upon India’s auto component industry to expand globally, strengthen supply-chain resilience and move up the value chain as the country deepens its integration with international markets.
Addressing the 66th Annual Session of the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association (ACMA) in New Delhi, Goyal said the industry’s international trade was close to USD 50 billion, with imports and exports broadly balanced.
He said Indian manufacturers had demonstrated their ability to produce quality products at globally competitive prices and should now expand their manufacturing footprint across developed markets.
Goyal highlighted India’s growing market access through nine trade agreements concluded over the past four to five years. According to the minister, these agreements cover 38 developed countries with a combined GDP of around USD 60 trillion.
He also acknowledged ACMA’s role in India’s trade negotiations, particularly its efforts to secure zero-duty access for Indian auto component manufacturers while seeking reciprocal market access.
Focus on supply-chain resilience
Referring to the theme of the ACMA session, “Beyond Resilience, managing uncertainty to creating new avenues, deeper supply chains”, Goyal said the industry needed to prepare for global uncertainties by strengthening domestic capabilities and diversifying supply chains.
He said India remained the fastest-growing among large economies and cited 7.8 per cent economic growth. He also noted high double-digit growth in the auto sector and said around five million passenger cars were expected to be sold this year.
The minister highlighted government initiatives supporting auto component manufacturing, speciality steel, technical textiles and semiconductors. He also invited industry players to participate in new industrial and smart cities being developed across the country.
Goyal said the government was open to creating dedicated plug-and-play industrial infrastructure, including parks focused on auto components and potential India-US partnerships.
He urged manufacturers to undertake indigenisation where supply-chain vulnerabilities remained, move towards integrated high-value solutions and use technology, including artificial intelligence, to improve quality control and understand customer requirements.
US invites Indian firms to invest
US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor described the India-US automotive partnership as being at a “historic high point”. He said the two countries were working together on the future of mobility and strengthening supply-chain resilience.
Gor invited Indian auto component manufacturers to explore investments in the United States through greenfield assembly facilities, research and development centres and distribution networks.
He cited the presence of Indian companies including Bharat Forge, Sundaram Clayton and Mahindra in the US automotive ecosystem and highlighted broader cooperation between the two countries in areas including pharmaceuticals, IT, data centres, space and defence.
The ambassador also referred to the Pax Silica Declaration and said India was among the first countries invited to join the initiative.
India-UK automotive partnership
Harjinder Kang, Trade Commissioner for South Asia and British Deputy High Commissioner for Western India, highlighted the strengthening India-UK automotive partnership.
He referred to the India-UK Vision 2035, the UK’s modern industrial strategy and the India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), which came into force on July 15, 2026.
Kang said the agreement had reduced 99 per cent of UK tariff lines and 90 per cent of Indian tariff lines to zero or very low duties. He said automotive component manufacturers would gain tariff-free access to each other’s markets.
He also highlighted opportunities for joint ventures and partnerships in advanced engineering, electric mobility, batteries, hydrogen solutions, lightweight composites and software-defined vehicle systems.
Goyal further called for greater attention to vehicle safety and urged the industry to work with the government to make vehicle scrappage financially attractive for consumers, creating greater demand for new-generation vehicles.
