Indo-Belgian relations trace back to 1948 when India established diplomatic relations with Belgium. Backed by a sustained relationship which has been christened by a host of agreements effected by the two countries over the last six decades, Indo-Belgian trade relations are set to brace to new horizons. With Belgium being the second largest trading partner after Germany in the EU, the trade between the two countries has crossed 10 Billion Euros in 2010. However, there has been a serious concern felt by both sides. The trade between the countries has been hovering around a single commodity group i.e., Gems and Jewelry. Both countries, of late, have realized the importance of diversifying the trade beyond diamonds into other domains identified by both the countries. There have been serious efforts culminating into policy implications to take the trade into new and emerging areas of mutual interest. While Belgium business interests cover ports, construction, banking and finance, chemicals and fertilizers and solar energy, India would like to further make widespread base of its traditional existing export basket with more venture into IT and IT enabled products. The present paper traces out the trading relations between the two countries taking into account the historical data of various commodity groups. It further tries to build a prognosis about the future trade directions and would look into the efforts of the two countries towards diversifying its trade beyond diamonds.

Indo-Belgian relations trace back to 1948 when India established diplomatic relations with Belgium. Backed by a sustained relationship which has been christened by a host of agreements effected by the two countries over the last six decades, Indo-Belgian trade relations are set to brace to new ho...