The Hindu Business Line : `UK looking for more trade ties with India'

AN increasing number of Indian companies are using the UK as a base to enter the single EU market and India now stands at the eighth position in overall foreign direct investment into the UK.

According to the British High Commissioner in India, Sir Michael Arthur, there are about 500 Indian companies operating in the UK, either on their own or in partnership with local companies. Nearly 400 of these companies are in the information technology sector, he told Business Line here on Tuesday.

Britain is a gateway to the single EU market and also offers excellent scope in traditional areas like biosciences. The UK is the second largest cumulative investor in India and a number of British companies have re-invested in the country.

Growing trade: According to Sir Michael, the two-way trade between the two countries is "extremely positive and going upwards." The trade is about $10 billion with the balance slightly in favour of India. Indian exports to the UK are growing faster, according to him.

The High Commissioner said he would like the trade between the two countries to be higher than what it was now, considering the long ties between the two.

With more and more Indian companies eyeing overseas markets for funds, the London Stock Exchange, with its width and depth, was the ideal exchange for these companies to float overseas. There are more Indian companies listed on the LSE than the NYSE and Nasdaq combined, according to the High Commissioner.

On the WTO ministerial to be held in Hong Kong next month, he said India had emerged as a leader of the G-20 nations and was articulate about its concerns on agriculture.

However, India shared a common interest with the UK and rest of Europe on the opening up of services sector. The UK would like India to open up more in NAMA (non-agriculture market access) and reduce tariffs.

Infrastructure sector: Asked why there were only a few British companies participating in the infrastructure sector in India, the High Commissioner said a number of companies had invested in the power sector when it was opened up in the early 1990s.

There were problems in the sector after which the British companies were cautious. However, British companies were active in the sector offering their expertise in consultancy.

In the energy sector, British companies like BP, Shell, Cairn Energy and Premier Oil were active in the country.

One area where the High Commissioner felt there would be greater interaction was education.

This year there would be 17,000 Indian students in UK universities and the figure would increase in the future. A road show by British universities had been held in Coimbatore and more were planned in different cities.

The UK Government had also announced initiatives to foster educational ties between institutions in the two countries.

Air connectivity: Sir Michael said flights between the two countries would only increase.

There were now 45 weekly flights against 19 a few years ago. By next year, the number of flights between the two countries would go up to 100. There was also demand for cargo flights between the two countries as export of horticultural produce from India to the UK picked up.

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page