India's Modi expected to usher in new era of bilateral agreements in Singapore visit

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to meet his Singapore counterpart Lawrence Wong this week marking his first trip to the city-state since he won a historic third term in office in June.

Modi will also be meeting Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Senior Minister and former Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, and Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong during his two-day visit.

"Singapore has consistently been a friend of India in the region, and has advocated for partnering with India," Anit Mukherjee, a senior lecturer at King's College London, told CNBC. "India would want to emulate this exemplary bilateral partnership with other countries in the region."

The country is India's sixth largest trading partner, with 3.2% share of India's overall trade. Imports from Singapore in financial year 2024 amounted to $21.2 billion, while exports totaled $14.4 billion.

Asia's biggest financial hub is also the largest source of foreign direct investments into India. Cumulative FDI inflows from Singapore to India stood at almost $160 billion from April 2000 to March 2024, amounting to almost a quarter of total FDI inflows to the South Asian nation.

Mukherjee also added that after Modi's trips to other continents this year, he wants to "drive home the point that he is not ignoring Southeast Asia."

Earlier this week, the Indian prime minister made his inaugural trip to Brunei where he met Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah. Modi is India's first prime minister that has made a bilateral visit to the oil-rich country.

During his visit, Modi inaugurated the new Chancery premises of the High Commission of India in Brunei and paid a visit to the Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque in Bandar Seri Begawan.

The Indian prime minister had also visited Italy