UK's business lobby says India a threat and an opportunity

The self-proclaimed voice of the British business, CBI, has said India is both a threat and an opportunity for UK's manufacturing sector.

Commenting on the government's "Growth Review Framework for Advanced Manufacturing", announced earlier this week, CBI has said UK manufacturers and government must be aware of the potential threat countries like India and China pose in the global marketplace.

"International competitors such as Japan, India, South Korea, France and the United States have already recognised the importance of supporting economic growth by introducing plans to increase manufacturing output, boost job numbers or remove barriers to competitiveness.

Policymakers and businesses must be aware of these threats as we compete in the global marketplace," said a statement from CBI.

CBI also reminded businesses the opportunity the expanding middle class in these countries offered to the manufacturing sector.

"The emerging and expanding middles classes in countries such as India and China, and across Africa and the Americas, are the next generation of consumers.

UK manufacturers and exporters must be prepared for this change and seek opportunities in these new markets - they are our future potential customers," the business lobby said in another part of its statement.

Interestingly, what CBI did not underline in its latest statement was that India's Tata Group, through its presence in six different sectors, is today the largest manufacturing group in the UK.

Tata Group has interests in automotive (Jaguar Land Rover), steel (Corus), beverages (Tetley) and IT (Tata Consultancy Services). The group also has a strong presence in hospitality through Taj Hotel, Quilon and The Bombay Brasserie, apart from Tata Communications and Brunner Mond (chemicals).

With revenues from the UK in excess of $7 billion, the group today employs 47,000 people across 19 different companies in the UK, making it the largest employer and foreign investor in the country.

CBI also said that since 1997, productivity in UK manufacturing had increased by 50 per cent, about double the growth in productivity for the economy as a whole.

The sector accounts for 46 per cent of the UK's exports and 74 per cent of its research and development.

CBI is the British counterpart for India's Confederation of Indian Industry. It is the UK's leading business organisation, representing for some 240,000 businesses that together employ around a third of the private sector workforce with representation in Delhi and Beijing, apart from Brussels and Washington.