Right time to invest: India tells Chinese investors

India has told Chinese investors that conditions are right for them to make India, already the largest market for project exports from China, their investment destination.

The Indian Consulate in Guangzhou has organised a face to face interaction with Chinese investors to make a case for them to step up investments in India, a press release from the Consulate said.

An Indian pavilion has been set up with the presence of the large Indian business delegation at the 17th China International Fair for Investment and Trade at Xiamen in Fujian Province to woo Chinese investors.

Outlining the advantages for investing in India, Consul General K Nagaraj Naidu said that the situation and conditions are right for Chinese investors to invest in the Indian market.

Bilateral trade between India and China, which was less than $3 billion in 2002, reached an all-time high of $74 billion in 2011. Last year, trade declined to $66 billion, a result of the overall weakening of macro-economic indicators, Naidu said.

However, we expect trade to recover in the coming months and reach the $100 billion target by 2015 agreed upon by the two governments, he said.

The seminar was attended by Indian delegation members from Sri City Special Economic Zone, Brandix India Apparel City, Mahindra World City-Jaipur, GMR Special Investment Region-Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh Real Estate Developers' Association and Singh &

Associates.

Senior officials from Fujian Provincial Government and Xiamen Municipal Government also attended the seminar.

Apart from trade, India is also the largest market for project exports from China.

Currently, projects under execution are estimated at over $55 billion, the press release said.

"The infrastructure deficit in India, in particular, is expected to drive Chinese exports while also attracting its investments.

“We are at a stage when a number of Chinese companies are showing strong interest in establishing a more sustainable presence in India," it said.

"There is a growing trend of outbound investment by Chinese companies.

“It is felt that there is a need to inform Chinese enterprises that the fast growing Indian economy provides a huge opportunity for investment," it said.

The Indian officials have highlighted the potential for foreign direct investment in various sectors besides India's policy for attracting FDI and basic laws and regulations applicable to FDI in India.