The rise and rise of Indian multinationals
Corporate India has come a long way since the government opened up the Indian markets for global competition in 1991. Fears that this would spell a doom for the local industry were then strong. Entry of multinational companies (MNCs) in Indian markets stoked a fear of an end to the domestic entrepreneurial spirit.
With their vast pool of resources, knowledge of multiple markets and a force of capable executives with proven track record in global markets, the MNCs were expected to rewrite the script of the Indian business. A decade and a half later, doomsayers have been proved wrong as not only have Indian companies tightened their stronghold on the domestic market, but they have also significantly increased overseas investments.
Indeed, the domestic companies have weathered the so-called onslaught of the MNCs, irrespective of the national and international economic conditions. The Indian firms could sail through the rough patch of the recessionary situation post 9/11.
With the world economy on an upturn from 2003, the domestic companies have consolidated their business. Then, they faced a new challenge in the form of Chinese mass-market phenomenon. Indian companies turned it into an opportunity to streamline their operations with a focus on cost reduction without sacrificing quality.
Today, domestic companies have grown in size and scale. Growth in consumerism in the country and renewed thrust of the government on infrastructural development has augured well for the domestic industry. Local companies have gained enough muscles to carry out consolidation of their business on the global front. This has given rise to the corporate entities popularly known as Indian MNCs —- Indian companies with production facilities located at the strategic places around the globe.
Some examples of Indian MNCs are noteworthy. In the fag end of 2003, Bharat Forge acquired Carl Dan Peddinghaus, a German forging company. The acquisition helped Bharat Forge to become the second biggest forging company in the world after Thyssen Krupp. The former also got an easy access to the European market and eventually to the German automakers. This was the beginning of rising aspirations of an erstwhile small local auto-components manufacturing company.
Today, Bharat Forge has nine production facilities in six countries across Europe, North America and Asia. The company now caters over 35 original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) around the world with wide range of products. Moreover, the proportion of exports in total revenues from operations for the company shot up from just over 17% in 2000-01 to 41% in 2005-06.
Indian professionals much in demand
New Delhi, Dec 13: India would emerge as one of the top three lucrative job markets across the world with a large majority of companies ramping up hirings by 39 per cent in the first quarter of 2007.
In a survey of 4,742 employers in 27 countries by leading recruitment firm manpower India's employment outlook survey 41 per cent of the respondents see an increase in hiring activity while 50 per cent are expecting no change. Only 2 per cent of those surveyed expect the hiring activity to go down.
Manpower said that hiring activity in India has shown a considerable increase and the country was ranked just behind Peru and Singapore.
"The general growth of Indian economy, outsourcing and offshoring of services, and continuous expansion of corporates have spurred the growth. Areas like retailing, infrastructure are responsible for the growth we see here," manpower executive chairman Soumen Basu told a news agency.
"Irrespective of the volatility in the world economy this growth rate is strong enough to put pressure on the existing talent pool," Basu said.
He said India was much ahead of US, Europe, China, Asia Pacific and Japan so far as the demand for talent was concerned.
Of all the four regions, east has scored comparatively lower than the other three.
"East would take one or two years to come at par with the other three," he said.
Botswana: We Need Indian Investors to Set Up Here
President Festus Mogae's visit to India will no doubt benefit this country. Like China, India is one of the world's emerging markets and is home to a billion people, making it an obvious attraction for the rest of the world.
To the west, India has for a while now been a destination to all sorts of mass-produced commodities. The cheap labour costs offered by Asian countries - including India - have opened a gateway as big corporations set up manufacturing industries on that continent.
India has had fair success in the area of medicine and technology and the country's doctors and IT specialists are strewn all over the world because of their expertise.
For countries such as Botswana, with a very small manufacturing base, India is important in a number of ways.
President Mogae visited tannery and leather works in India and since there is a huge production of leather in Botswana, the Indian visit could open doors that have remained locked for years. There is, of course, the option of sending our various skins and hides to India, but this would not be as viable as inducing investors from India to come and set up here. The obvious benefit of setting up here is that factories would employ Batswana and pay tax to create more wealth for the country.
President Mogae is expected to visit the diamond cutting factories of Mumbai.
This is very timely, considering the setting up of the local Diamond Technology Park under the diamond beneficiation programme. It is important that the President appreciates how the diamond processing industries benefit India, so that he can agitate for a more beneficial system here.
Indian investors with experience in diamond processing could be wooed to set up here so that Botswana's diamond park could rival the best centres in the world.
Botswana's newly set up embassy in India and soon to be set-up BEDIA office should ensure that everything possible is done to attract Indian investors to Botswana. We need them to unlock the potential that we have always had.
Indian men demanding dowry irks New Zealand WELLINGTON: The New Zealand government is considering making dowry illegal after the increasing trend of New Zealand born Indian men, or those with residency, travelling to India for arranged marriages and extorting cash from the girl's family.
Women's affairs minister Lianne Dalziel and Immigration Minister David Cunliffe have asked their respective ministries to investigate how widespread the problem is, according to Stuff.com.
Dowry cases are on the rise in the country. A New Zealand based women's support group, Shakti migrant services trust, said the men involved demand more money from families once they return to New Zealand with their new wives.
According to the trust, the men usually sponsor their wives into the country on visitor visas and then start demanding more money from their families in India. When the money dries up, or their wives try to escape harassment or abuse surrounding the demands, the men withdraw their sponsorship.
Unfortunately, most marriages are not registered in India, resulting in women having no legal proof of their marriage.
They come to New Zealand on a visitors' visa under the culturally arranged marriage policy.
Last year, 228 women arrived in New Zealand under that category, up from 106 in 2003/2004. Since 2003, 732 women have come into New Zealand under the policy.
Indian gov't pledges no foreign interference in strategic nuclear programs
NEW DELHI, Dec. 12 (Xinhua) -- Indian External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee told the Parliament Tuesday that no foreign interference will be allowed concerning India's strategic nuclear programs.
Mukherjee made the statement in the House of the People of Indian Parliament after the main opposition party Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Left parties openly opposed to the legislation passed by U.S. Congress on India-U.S. civilian nuclear deal.
"The Government has taken note of certain extraneous and prescriptive provisions in the legislation," he said, "We have always maintained that the conduct of foreign policy determined solely by our national interests is our sovereign right. We have also been clear that our strategic program remains outside the purview of these discussions."
The U.S. Congress passed the final legislation after a Senate-House reconciliation conference on Saturday, which will allow the U.S. administration to export nuclear fuel and technologies for civilian use to India.
The nuclear understanding with the United States is significant for India's energy security, Mukherjee said.
"Energy security has become a critical constraint in expanding our economic growth and development," he said, adding that India's nuclear energy only contributes less than 3 percent of the country's energy supply.
India plans to increase the nuclear power generation to 30,000 MW by 2022 and 63,000 MW by 2032.
"The absence of international cooperation constrains us from reaching these nuclear energy targets," he said.
The Left Parties, supporting the ruling coalition government, said on Monday that the U.S. legislation on civil nuclear deal was not acceptable while the BJP also asked the government to reject the legislation as it contained "humiliating conditionalities."
Mukherjee defended that Washington has categorically assured India that the legislation explicitly authorizes civil nuclear cooperation with India in a manner fully consistent with the two joint statements made on July 18, 2005 and March 2 this year.
Indian IT industry going the espanol way
The Indian IT industry is venturing into Latin America to be closer to clients in the United States. But the IT companies find the local market attractive as well, reports CNBC-TV18.
When Gabriel Rozman visits the TCS office in New York, he's in a closer time zone to his office back in Uruguay than to his company's headquarters in India. That's one of the reasons why Latin America is emerging as a new frontier for the Indian IT industry seeking to service its biggest market, the United States, more efficiently.
TCS' IberoAmerica division, which operates in the Spanish and Portuguese speaking regions of the world, set up its first office in Latin America four years ago. Today, it has a staff of 3,500 in the continent, runs Global Delivery Centers in Brazil, Uruguay and Chile; and will open one in Mexico next January.
Satyam followed TCS into Latin America 2 years ago, opening shop in Sao Paulo, Brazil. While the company has onsite staff in various Latin American countries servicing existing clients, it also plans a big push into the local market, pointing out that Brazil's IT services market alone is estimated to be worth USD17 billion.
"What we're looking at is the need to expand outward in Latin America, into Mexico, Argentina, into other regions of the Caribbean in order to service the broader Latin American market. So in the not too distant future, in the next 2-3 years, it's likely that we'll have about a thousand people servicing the Latin American market," said Ram Mynampati, President, Satyam Computer Services.
Indian-owned BPO firms in the US are also heading south. 24/7 Customer opened a call center in Guatemala earlier this year, and plans more centers in El Salvador, Argentina and Chile.
"Right now, about 20% of the US population identifies itself as Hispanic. It's also one of the fastest growing population segments. If you look at the immigration rate, which is about a million people a year, again most of the immigrants are Hispanic," said PV Kannan, Co-Founder & CEO, 24/7 Customer.
Latin America is not yet considered a rival to the Indian IT services and BPO industry as it's still easier and cheaper to service most clients from India. But the Indian pioneers in Latin America are convinced their competitors cannot ignore the continent for too long.
As the advantages of operating from Latin America become clearer, we'll soon find more Indian companies saying: Se habla espanol - we speak Spanish.
