US corporate sector welcomes 2019 Budget, says it will attract FDIs
Washington, July 06: The American corporate sector on Friday hailed the maiden Budget of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, noting that it is not only inclusive but also attractive for foreign investments.
President of US India Strategic and Partnership Forum (USISPF) Mukesh Aghi said the budget is inclusive and policy decisions are encouraging for American companies.
It's "good news" for companies like Apple, Aghi told PTI. The Budget opens up the Indian market, and encourages US companies to invest more, at the same time it ensures prosperity and growth for the lower sections, he said.
The Budget is trying to make positive structural changes, he added.
"We are pleased to see a 2019-2020 Budget that delivers a forward-looking and reform-minded approach for the Modi government's second term," Nisha Desai Biswal, president of US India Business Council, told PTI.
Decoding Budget 2019: Hits and Misses for middle class
USIBC welcomes proactive measures to double farmers' income, liberalise FDI in a number of sectors and allow 100 per cent FDI for insurance intermediaries, and increase FPI investment limits -- all reforms USIBC has actively supported, she said.
USIBC members will be encouraged by the Budget's focus on skilling Indians, with an emphasis on jobs in data analytics, artificial intelligence, and robotics, Biswal said.
"Goals like transforming India into a global space and aviation hub also demonstrate the longer-term thinking of the new government. We look forward to working with Prime Minister Modi and the Government of India to make these priorities, and the larger vision for a modern India a reality," Biswal said.
"This is a visionary budget from the first woman Finance Minister of India marked with a long-term 10-year plan while retaining focus on immediate priorities," said Karun Rishi, president of USA-India Chamber of Commerce told PTI.
The focused impetus for sustainable job creation via targeted investment in infrastructure will have a ripple effect on secondary and tertiary employment.
The mission to provide housing to all by 2022 has the potential not just for growth in downstream sectors such as cement and steel but also for overall job creation in these vital industries, he said.
It is a relatively cautious Budget, considering the government's election mandate, noted Rick Rossow from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) think-tank.
"I expected some bigger ideas, but instead we saw a continuation of key programmes such as infrastructure development, expansion of social programmes in rural areas, and nods to big campaigns like Digital India and Make in India," Rossow told PTI.
From
a
foreign
business
perspective,
it
was
a
mixed
bag,
he
said.
"On
the
positive
side,
several
sectors
were
listed
for
foreign
investment
reforms
including
insurance,
media,
and
single
brand
retail,"
he
added.
"Customs duties are to be reduced in some narrow areas like specialty chemicals and capital goods for electronics manufacturing. But in a range of other sectors, customs duties will be increased including auto parts, video recorders, metal fittings, and more. This Budget is not going to alleviate the current state of trade tensions between the US and India," Rossow said.
Union Budget 2019: Full text of Nirmala Sitharaman's maiden speech
Lauding the fiscal deficit target of 3.3 per cent for FY 2020, Rishi told PTI that much will depend on the execution and global economic factors.
The budget strikes a reasonable balance between addressing the objective of inclusivity and laying the path for Prime Minister Modi's vision of a USD 5 trillion economy by focusing on infrastructure spending incentivising affordable housing and providing growth capital for PSU banks, he said.
Setting
up
the
National
Research
Foundation
(NRF)
chaired
by
Prime
Minister
Narendra
Modi
and
co-chaired
by
Principal
Scientific
Advisor
K
Vijay
Raghavan
to
fund,
coordinate
and
promote
research
in
India
will
be
a
game
changer,
Rishi
said.
"The
NRF's
focus
on
promoting
and
funding
multi-disciplinary,
multi-institutional,
multi-investigator
led
research
by
having
robust
industry-academia
collaboration
could
tremendously
benefit
the
biopharma
and
healthcare
industry
in
India.
Indian
and
global
patients
can
look
forward
to
cutting
edge
innovative
medicines
coming
out
of
India
in
the
next
five
to
ten
years,"
he
said.
Stating that USA-India Chamber of Commerce has been encouraging structured research in India for over 12 years, Rishi said the current setup is not efficient.
The
NRF
can
correct
the
deficit
in
research,
he
asserted.
As
per
data
released
by
the
central
government,
India's
research
and
innovation
investment
vis-a-vis
global
standards
in
terms
of
percentage
of
GDP
is
quite
less
(0.68
per
cent)
in
comparison
to
the
United
States
(2.8
per
cent),
China
(2.1
per
cent),
Israel
(4.3
per
cent)
and
South
Korea
(4.2
per
cent).
"If India aims to emerge as a global research and innovation hub, apart from just increasing the funding, we also need to have a central systematic mechanism to fund and monitor research and innovation outcomes, especially in the fields of national importance.
"Under the guidance of top leadership, the NRF has the potential to make India a global partner in BioPharma Research and Development. A 15.4 per cent increase in allocation to the healthcare sector compared to the previous year's revised budget is a remarkable step," Rishi said.