India has signed an economic partnership agreement with Oman to boost bilateral trade and investment as it seeks to expand Middle East ties and diversify to beat steep US tariffs.
India and Oman have an annual trade of more than $10 billion. The relationship is important for New Delhi as the Gulf nation is a gateway to the narrow Strait of Hormuz between Oman and Iran, a major transit point for global oil shipments.
"This (pact) will set a new pace of our trade, add new trust to our investments and open doors to new opportunities in many sectors," Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in an address in Oman on Thursday.
He is in Muscat as part of his three-nation tour that included Ethiopia and Jordan.
The pact, India's second after the United Kingdom this year, will help Indian goods find new markets as exporters intensify diversification efforts to defy US President Donald Trump's punishing tariffs.
After talks fell apart, Trump doubled duties on Indian goods to 50 percent in late August, the highest in the world. The hike included a 25 percent levy that was in retaliation for India's purchases of Russian oil.
