India, Saudi need to explore opportunities in new products, biz: Prabhu

New Delhi: India and Saudi Arabia need to explore opportunities in new products, businesses and regions to boost trade and investment ties between the countries, Commerce and Industry Minster Suresh Prabhu said Wednesday.

Ways to increase trade and investments were discussed during a meeting between Prabhu and the Saudi delegation, which was led by Kamel Al-Munajjed, Chairman of Saudi Indian Business Council.

"India's energy security is ensured due to the continuous and uninterrupted supply of petroleum products from Saudi Arabia. But now it is time for both the countries to go beyond petroleum and diversify into new products, businesses and regions," Prabhu said in a statement.

He said that opportunities are endless for both the countries to collaborate and work together in new regions like Africa.

"Both Saudi Arabia and India have to now look beyond the Gulf region and explore new markets," he said.

He also informed that India is looking to invest in Saudi Arabia.

"For this eight working groups have been set-up to identify companies in Saudi Arabia and India who can work together," he added.

Saudi Arabia is India's fourth largest trade partner after China, the US and Japan and is a major source of energy.

India imports around 17 per cent of its crude oil requirement from the Kingdom.

In 2017-18, the bilateral trade has increased by 9.56 per cent to USD 27.48 billion.

Saudi Arabia is the 15th largest market in the world for Indian exports and is destination to 1.85 per cent (2017-18) of India's global exports.