India Is Open To Investments PM Modi Assures Korean Investors
Addressing the nation at Indo-Korea Business forum, PM Modi said that India is ready for business and open to investments. The Prime Minister stated that India is the 3rd largest economy in Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) terms and would soon be the 5th largest economy in terms of nominal GDP. We are continuously improving our investment atmosphere, he added.
The PM said that there are very few countries in the world which have the key components in place for doing business together. India has all 3 components i.e. Democracy, Demand and Demography, he added.
“India is the most open economy in the world. In many sectors, India has allowed 100% FDI and is among the top 10 FDI destinations in the world. In terms of Ease of Doing Business, India has climbed 42 places in the World Bank Ease of Doing Business rankings over the past 3 years,” Modi said.
Modi assured Korean investors that the Government of India would provide every support in protecting their investments and valued their contribution to its economy.
In terms of areas of cooperation, he stated that India's software and Korea's technology can be combined, and the two countries can combine various other strengths to emerge as key partners in Asia. He identified sectors such as renewable energy, power, clean tech, steel, and IT & ITeS, among others, for bilateral engagement.
Also speaking at the forum, PAIK Un Gyu, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, Republic of Korea thanked the reforms undertaken in India, for enhancement of Indo-Korean relations.
“There has been greater collaboration between the two countries. To further strengthen the bilateral relationship, there is a need to re-negotiate the India Korea Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) and expand it in the light of current developments.”
He also suggested the need to step up cooperation in manufacturing as well as infrastructure development including Smart Cities among others.
The trade and economic relations between India and Republic of Korea have gathered momentum in recent years with bilateral trade reaching $16.8 billion in 2016-17. India is the 13th largest trade partner of Korea.
Bilateral economic ties received a visible boost from the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the Republic of Korea from 18-19 May 2015. India and Korea decided to commence negotiations to amend the CEPA, strengthen cooperation on energy, electronics and shipbuilding industries, including setting up of a Joint Working Group for Cooperation on the Shipbuilding sector and another in the field of Electronics Hardware manufacturing.
Korea has offered to provide US$10 billion financing (development assistance and concessional credit) to India for infrastructure projects.
