The Suits Get Talking

This is reflected in major investments announced by US companies in India8212; IBM, General Electric, Motorola and Ford, to name a few8212;during this short period. It8217;s also probably the first time that US trade and business delegations are willing to visit India during the summer months. A high-profile trade delegation from Houston, the energy capital, has just returned from India, while another from Seattle Chamber of Commerce is ready to go.

In less than six months, the US India Business Council USIBC delegation is leading the second defense delegation to India as the country is considered as a big market. The delegation visiting Delhi next week will be looking at outsourcing some of their production facilities. Lockheed and Boeing have significantly increased their strength in India.

Among other prominent visitors to India this summer has been Karan Bhatia, Deputy US Trade Representative; Chris Israel, who is International IPR Enforcement Coordinator of Department of Commerce; eBay CEO Meg Whitman, Intel CEO Paul Otellini, GE CEO Jeffry Immelt and IBM chairman and CEO, Samuel J. Palmisano8212;all this after March when Bush visited India.

The New Buzzword

During this period over half-a-dozen Indian Cabinet Ministers8212;Sharad Pawar, Kamal Nath, Kapil Sibal, Dayanidhi Maran, to name a few8212;and top officials like Montek Singh Ahluwalia have visited US to hold high-level business meets with their American counterparts.

As a senior official from the US Department of Commerce rightly puts it, 8216;8216;India suddenly appears to have become the buzzword in the US corporate and industry sector.8217;8217; Why, business journalists from The New York Times and Wall Street Journal have now started calling up the Indian Consulate for quotes and are attending functions, which till last year even local Indian reporters were not willing to attend. And a junior minister like Ashwini Kumar is invited to theWSJ editorial board meeting.

The first-ever address by the US Vice-President Dick Cheney at the annual meet of the USIBC, observers say, was an event of significance and indicated what importance Bush Administration now gives to India in the field of trade and commerce. It is not simply the strategic relationship alone.

And then, for the first time in a decade, the Under Secretary for International Trade, Franklin L. Lavin, would be leading a high-profile trade mission to India later this year. Reports indicate that the Department of Commerce is having a tough time in accommodating requests from the corporate sector to include them in the mission. Levin has already visited India once after the Presidential visit.

Deepening Impact

That8217;s not all. State after state in the US are moving ahead in forging business and trade relationship with Indian states. Indian Embassy and its Consulates in New York, Houston, Chicago and San Francisco have been receiving requests from the Governors of various states that they want to visit India. For instance Governor George Pataki from New York wants to visit Bangalore and the State of Pennsylvania has opened a trade office in Bangalore. Two months ago, New Jersey State organised a major trade conference wherein India was the theme.

Of course, one of the major documents released during the Bush visit8212;the CEOs report8212;is being studied and is in various stages of implementation. Some require legislative changes, and might take time, but it is on the right track, officials said.

The Department of Agriculture and the Department of Commerce is working overtime to ensure Indian mangoes hit the US market next summer. There is enthusiasm in the US trade sector as this past week India awarded contract for import of 2.2 million tones of wheat valued at 435 million to two US companies. Similarly, India sorted out a contentious issue as it announced revised quarantine regulations for import of almonds.

But as the trade relationship takes a major jump, new set of problems has started to come up. US firms complain of bureaucratic delays, IPR protection, and, of course, seek more reforms in insurance and retail. The Indian side, meanwhile, is pushing hard to get its banks permission to expand operations in the US. And Indian exporters seek solutions to long delays in US ports.

This, officials from the Department of Commerce, say is expected, but things are being sorted out on a priority basis. The wavelength of officials on both sides is the same. And, that is indeed good news.