Indian PM promises “ease of doing business” to global investors
January 11, 2015, 8:48 am

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (left) with UN Chief Ban-ki Moon in Ahmedabad, Gujarat on 11 January 2015 [MEA, india]

“Ease of doing business in India is a prime concern for you and us. I assure you that we are working very seriously on these issues. The Government of India is working towards single window clearance at the Federal and State levels,” Modi told investors on Sunday at the “Vibrant Gujarat” Summit in the Western Indian city of Ahmedabad.

World Bank President Jim Yong Kim said at the event Indian economy is likely to grow at 6.4 per cent in 2015.

“We project that India will be a bright spot in an otherwise medium global economic outlook. (The) economy according to our projections is expected to grow 6.4 per cent this year and even faster in 2016,” he said.

UN Secretary General Ban-ki Moon and US Secretary of State John Kerry are attending the event in the Indian Prime Minister’s home state. Kerry will push India to make it easier for US companies to do business there, US officials said ahead of his visit.

The Indian economy expanded by 5.7 per cent and 5.3 per cent in the second and third quarter of 2014. India’s benchmark stock index was among the best performers this year.

Indian Prime Minister Modi resorted to executive decrees in December to implement coal and insurance reforms bypassing political opposition in the Indian Parliament.

“The ordinances demonstrate the firm commitment and the determination of this government to reform. It also announces to the rest of the world including investors that this country can no longer wait even if one of the houses of parliament waits indefinitely to take up its agenda,” said Finance Minister Arun Jaitley after the Cabinet decision to go ahead with the reforms.

However, the Indian government is struggling to keep a pledge to narrow budget deficit to a seven-year low. India’s budget deficit reached 99 per cent of the full-year target in just eight months.

Global investors would be disappointed if the government fails to meet the goal for a shortfall of 4.1 percent of gross domestic product.

The next major milestone will be Indian Prime Minister Modi’s first full-year fiscal budget in late February, seen as an opportunity for the government to address criticism it has not moved quickly enough on the economy.

TBP