Addressing a conference of the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce, Garcetti said that India-US trade had gone up sharply to $200 billion a year and he was looking at a target of $500 billion in the near future…reports Asian Lite News
The number of US visas issued to Indian students and businessmen has shot up by 60% in recent months compared to the previous year and efforts are on to remove the backlog further, US Ambassador Eric Garcetti said on Tuesday.
Addressing a conference of the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce, Garcetti said that India-US trade had gone up sharply to $200 billion a year and he was looking at a target of $500 billion in the near future.
Garcetti said that at a recent meeting of global business leaders in the US, the largest number of participants were from India and this reflected the strengthening ties between the two countries.
Citing the large investments being made in India by US companies such as Boeing and Apple, Garcetti said American companies had created more than 3 million jobs in India.He said he was looking at the India-US business ties emerging as a two-way relationship in which Indian companies would also be investing in the US to create jobs.
‘Opaque tax practices still a barrier’
While highlighting that American companies are very interested in investing in India, Garcetti pointed out that “opaque” corporate tax practices in the country are still a “barrier” for many companies.
“Opaque corporate tax practices are still a barrier to too many (US) companies that want to be here. This is a great moment for all of you to recruit US companies.”
However, he highlighted that many CEOs of US companies are showing much interest in investing in India. The US envoy said that the strong growth rate of Indian companies and the strengthening of laws will incentivize more investment in the country.
“Every CEO is saying ‘Tell me about India, get somebody who can explain India, I want to go visit India’. They want to invest. But, we have to make sure there is protection for intellectual property…” he said. “Today, Indian companies are producing patterns at such a rowing rate compared to the past, strengthening this with a rule of law, but the consequences. It will incentivize more investment because people know these investments will be protected for a longer period of time,” Garcetti added.
Earlier at the event, he also hailed the ties between India and the United States and said that the relationship between the two nations is multiplicative in nature. He added that when India and the US come together, the relationship becomes very important for the world.
“…What this US-India relationship is about and I’ve been telling people recently that this is not India plus the United States. It is not an addition, an additive relationship,” Garcetti said at an event here in Delhi.
He noted, “It’s multiplication, a multiplicative relationship that, when we come together, is more powerful than just the two elements for ourselves and just as important for our world.”
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