The US said it plans to sign a joint infrastructure plan with India, Middle Eastern countries and the European Union aimed at connecting them via a network of railways and sea routes.
The deal is reportedly intended to link Middle Eastern countries by rail and to India through shipping lanes from ports in the region, extending on to Europe.
The project will integrate railway lines and port connections from India to Europe, across the Middle East, leading to a faster transit of goods, a European Commission official said separately. It will develop energy infrastructure and enable the production and transport of green hydrogen to all partner countries. The plan includes enhancing telecommunications and data transfers with a new undersea cable connecting the region.
The rail link will increase the speed of trade between India and Europe by 40 per cent, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is expected to say later Saturday when announcing the plans.
Railway stocks were in momentum following media reports of potential deal to connect Gulf and Arab countries via railways, said Siddhartha Khemka, Head of Retail Research at Motilal Oswal Financial Services.
Leaders will also launch a trans-African corridor to improve transport connections between the Katanga region of the Democratic Republic of Congo and the so-called "Copper Belt" in Zambia to Lobito port in Angola, the European Commission official said. The US and the EU are backing this project.
