India Hosts BRICS Leaders' Summit 2026

Summary

Bloomberg's Haslinda Amin previews India hosting the BRICS leaders' summit in New Delhi. The summit brings Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin, focuses on Middle East and Ukraine conflicts, and comes amid US criticism of BRICS. BRICS members aim to strengthen food and energy security, disaster preparedness, and critical supply chains, though no specific investment trade is presented.

• India hosts the BRICS leaders' summit in New Delhi over the weekend.
• Xi Jinping attends for the first time since 2019, while Vladimir Putin makes his first in-person BRICS appearance outside Russia since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
• Iran's participation and ongoing Middle East and Ukraine conflicts test BRICS' push for a unified global voice.
• US President Donald Trump criticizes BRICS as a challenge to American power, forcing India to balance ties with Washington.
• The event is relatively low key compared with the 2023 G20 summit in New Delhi.
• Xi Jinping's visit to Washington in less than two weeks is highlighted as one to watch.
• BRICS members represent about a quarter of global nominal GDP and roughly half the world's population.
• The agenda includes food and energy security, disaster preparedness, and critical supply chains.