BRICS entered 2026 with a larger international footprint, but the September summit in New Delhi suggested that the group’s next phase may be defined less by adding countries and more by building practical mechanisms for trade, finance and technology cooperation. At the 18th BRICS Summit on September 12–13, leaders adopted the New Delhi Declaration, covering cross-border payments, supply-chain resilience, artificial intelligence, development finance and support for small and medium-sized businesses. For U.S. companies and investors, the significance lies not in any single announcement but in whether those initiatives gradually change how business is conducted across some of the world’s largest…