20 astonishing facts about the Indian economy

India is today one of world's fastest growing economies. The Indian economy is the world's tenth largest in terms of nominal GDP and the fourth largest in terms of purchasing power parity.

Purchasing power parity is the exchange rate that makes the cost of an item the same in two countries.

According to the International Monetary Fund, India's nominal GDP stands at $1.53 trillion. In terms of purchasing power parity, India's economy is the fourth largest in the world at $4.06 trillion.

India could emerge as the world's third largest economy by 2030, benefiting from strong domestic demand and favourable demographics, according to a Standard Chartered Global Research study.

India is likely to grow faster, on average, than China over the next two decades, the study said.

Even as India faces major issues like poverty, unemployment and corruption, there are many reasons to feel good about its economic boom and prospertiy.

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India is likely to become the world's fastest growing economy in 2012.

The Asian giant's growth has been incredible with its average annual gross domestic product (GDP) growing at 5.8 per cent for the past two decades.

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India's GDP expanded by 7.8 per cent in the first quarter of 2011 compared to the same period in the previous year.

India's average quarterly GDP growth was 8.40 per cent from 2004 to 2010, hitting a high of 10.10 per cent in September 2006 and a record low of 5.50 per cent in December 2004.

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The service sector makes up 54 per cent of the GDP, the agricultural sector 28 per cent, and the industrial sector 18 per cent.

The major industries include textiles, telecommunications, chemicals, food processing, steel, transport equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery and software.

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The equity market capitalisation of the companies listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange stood at $1.63 trillion as of December 2010, making it the 4th largest stock exchange in Asia and the 8th largest in the world.

The BSE has 5,034 listed Indian companies.

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India has the world's second largest labour force with 467 million workers. About 25 per cent of the world's new workers will be Indian in the next three years.

Over half of India's population is below 25 years. By 2020, the average age of an Indian is expected to be 29 years.

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India's working-age population will increase by 240 million over the next two decades, according to Deutsche Bank. India has the second-largest pool of scientists and engineers in the world.

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Mumbai has the world's 6th most expensive office location.

The housing and real estate sector including cineplex, multiplex, integrated townships and commercial complexes, etc, attracted a foreign direct investment of $ 9,405 million from April 2000 to January 2011.

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India now has a record number of 55 billionaires, according to the Forbes 2011 world billionaires' list.

India stands third after the United States and China in the number of billionaires. The combined wealth of India's 55 richest is $246.5 billion, much higher than last year's total of $222.1 billion.

By 2030, India's middle class population will grow to more than 580 million.

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India ranks 51st in global competitiveness, 17th in financial market sophistication, 24th in the banking sector, 44th in business sophistication and 39th in innovation, ahead of several advanced economies.

India could well become a major economic power provided it performs true to its potential.

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Seven of the world's top 15 technology outsourcing companies are based in India.

According to Nasscom, India's IT and BPO exports jumped 18.7 per cent during fiscal 2011 to $59 billion. It now accounts for 26 per cent of India's overall exports and 11 per cent of services revenue.

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India's consumer market, currently the world's thirteenth largest, is expected to become fifth largest by 2030. Currently, Indians are amongst the most confident consumers globally.

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India's telecommunication industry, the world's fastest growing, added 227 million subscribers during 2010-11.

According to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), the wireless user base grew 2.52 per cent to 771.18 million in January from 752.19 million in the previous month.

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India is now the seventh largest vehicle producing nation in the world. Its automobile industry, the world's second-fastest growing, increased domestic sales by 26 per cent during 2009-10, and exports by 36 per cent during 2008-09.

The cheapest and the most expensive cars are now available in India.

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India has the 9th largest aviation market in the world. India is expected to be the fastest growing civil aviation market in the world by 2020.

The domestic air passenger traffic grew by 19 percent in 2010, registering 51.53 million passengers as compared to 43.3 million in 2009.

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India has the world's 7th largest foreign reserves pegged at $310 billion. India's foreign exchange reserves rose by $1.68 billion to $310.21 billion for the week ended May 27 on the back of a sharp increase in foreign currency assets.

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India's exports jumped 34.42 per cent in April 2011 to $23.8 billion continuing the fast paced growth of the previous fiscal.

The trade deficit for April 2011 was estimated at $8.98 billion which was lower than the deficit of $11.02 billion during April 2010.

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India has a road network of over 3.314 million kilometres, making it the third largest road network in the world.

The Indian Railways has the world's fourth largest railway network with more than 64,215 kilometres of track and 7,083 stations.

It is one of the world's largest commercial employers, with more than 1.6 million employees.

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India has 27 public sector banks, 88 scheduled commercial banks (SCBs), 31 private banks and 38 foreign banks with a combined network of over 53,000 branches and 17,000 ATMs.

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India ranks second worldwide in farm output. India is the largest producer and consumer of tea in the world, accounting for more than 30 per cent of global production and 25 per cent of consumption.