At the 18th BRICS Summit on 12–13 September 2026, leaders adopted the New Delhi Declaration under India’s Ministry of External Affairs chairmanship. The text sets out cooperation on trade facilitation, customs procedures, supply chains, digitalisation, cross-border payments and logistics. Leaders framed these as tools to ease business transactions rather than just diplomatic goals. The declaration also anchors voluntary implementation of the BRICS Authorized Economic Operators Action Plan 2026, signalling a push to turn customs trust programmes into tangible border benefits for vetted firms. In parallel, leaders endorsed ongoing work by the BRICS Payment Task Force to make cross-border payments faster, cheaper and safer, with greater use of local currencies and interoperable messaging systems.
BRICS scale raises stakes for Asian exporters
BRICS now counts 11 full members, including Indonesia, following its accession as a full member in January 2025. Together, the expanded grouping of Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates accounts for roughly 49–50 percent of the world’s population, about 40 percent of global GDP and around a quarter of global trade, according to recent summit and analytical coverage. Russian President Vladimir Putin told leaders in New Delhi that intra-BRICS trade had already reached US$1.2 trillion, underlining that the bloc is no longer a marginal commercial forum. At that scale, even modest frictions in customs, payments or logistics translate into meaningful costs once repeated across thousands of shipments.
For Asian exporters, this is more than a political story. India’s own merchandise trade deficit with its BRICS partners reached about US$226.1 billion in FY2026, with imports of roughly US$321.8 billion and exports of only US$95.7 billion, according to trade data cited in recent analyses. BRICS partners now represent about 42 percent of India’s merchandise imports but only around 22 percent of exports. As a result, Indian exporters and logistics groups have a clear interest in any initiative that lowers transaction friction within the bloc. The New Delhi Declaration’s emphasis on customs facilitation, logistics and faster payments therefore aligns with tangible commercial pressures in Asia, not just geopolitical positioning.
Indonesia’s experience with the United Arab Emirates offers a concrete model for translating customs pledges into real border gains. The two countries fully implemented their Mutual Recognition Arrangement on Authorized Economic Operators on 11 November 2023, providing easier customs procedures for companies that meet AEO standards. That arrangement shows how mutual recognition can reduce inspections, simplify documentation and shorten dwell times when authorities trust each other’s compliance regimes. BRICS leaders now want to replicate that kind of effect across a much larger, more diverse grouping through the AEO Action Plan 2026. The quotable line for investors is simple: BRICS trade commitments only matter when they show up as fewer forms, fewer checks and faster cargo clearance.
What does this mean for payments and transaction costs?
Payments remain the most prominent test of credibility for intra-BRICS trade pledges. The New Delhi Declaration acknowledges the work of the BRICS Payment Task Force on cross-border interoperability for payment and messaging channels and on trade settlement in local currencies. Leaders instructed the task force to continue work on mechanisms that are fast, low-cost, more accessible, efficient, transparent and safe, while stressing that there is no one-size-fits-all model. However, India’s push to link BRICS payment systems and explore central bank digital currency interoperability did not secure a firm commitment in the final text. Instead, the declaration stops at recognition of ongoing technical work, leaving the architecture of a shared payment rail still open.
For corporates, that nuance matters. A company does not gain simply because BRICS members study payment links. It gains when an invoice can be paid across borders with fewer steps, clear foreign-exchange terms and predictable settlement times. Current research on BRICS payment corridors suggests fees on some African routes can reach 8.5 percent, which explains why policymakers see high transaction costs as both a trade and development issue. If BRICS can use linked fast payment systems or future digital currency bridges to compress those spreads, Asian exporters into Africa and the Gulf could see direct margin gains.
Indonesia is positioning itself as a practical voice inside this debate. Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto used the New Delhi summit to call for stronger cooperation on industrialisation and global supply chains, urging members to combine resources, production capacity, technology and markets. China welcomed the proposal and signalled readiness to deepen cooperation on technology, industry and capacity building, adding a bilateral layer to the broader BRICS agenda. Meanwhile, Indonesian business leaders have been pushing for greater interoperability among payment systems and for the BRICS Business Council to focus on concrete obstacles faced by firms. That mix of political and corporate pressure increases the chances that future BRICS delivery will be judged by transaction-level metrics rather than communiqués.
Investors should watch three signals next. First, whether the BRICS AEO Action Plan produces measurable cuts in port dwell times, repeat inspections and documentation requirements on specific trade routes. Second, whether the Payment Task Force moves from studies to pilot corridors with lower fees and faster processing, especially on Asia–Africa and Asia–Middle East links. Third, whether India’s and Indonesia’s push for practical cross-border payment solutions gains traction at the next BRICS chairship. Those outcomes will show whether BRICS trade commitments are becoming a real factor in trade finance and logistics pricing, or remain mostly a diplomatic story.
Quick answers
Russian President Vladimir Putin told BRICS leaders at the New Delhi summit that intra-BRICS trade had already reached US$1.2 trillion, reflecting the bloc’s growing commercial weight across its 11 full members.
The BRICS Authorized Economic Operators Action Plan 2026 is a voluntary framework adopted at the New Delhi Summit that aims to extend mutual customs trust programmes across BRICS members, reducing inspections, documentation burdens and border dwell times for vetted companies.
Current research on BRICS payment corridors suggests fees on some African routes can reach 8.5 percent, which is why the BRICS Payment Task Force is exploring fast payment links and potential digital currency bridges to compress those costs.
