Indian Companies Created 50,000 Jobs In US, Indian Investment Grew 20 Fold In Last Decade: Burns

Indian companies have created 50,000 jobs in the U.S. while the Indian investment in the country grew 20 fold in 10 years to $27 billion in 2010, making the economic relationship between both the countries “very much a two-way street,” says Deputy Secretary of State William J. Burns.

Commenting on the future of the U.S.- India relations, Burns said that the progress in the U.S.- relations needn’t be measured always by the dramatic breakthroughs or moments but by the real measure of progress in the increasingly vital partnership.

Acknowledging that the U.S. and India relations had become more based on the mutual cooperation and shared interests, Burns said, “India has no more important partner than the United States. Our total direct investment in India in 2000 was $2.4 billion. By 2010, it was $27 billion. By the way, over roughly the same time period, the stock of Indian direct investment in America grew from a little over $200 million to nearly $5 billion – more than a twenty-fold increase.“

Indian companies have been investing in the U.S. even as the U.S. companies were entering into strategic partnerships with Indian states and companies promoting the trade and technology transfer to that country.

“An Indian-owned Tata factory in Ohio puts thousands of Americans to work, part of the over 50,000 jobs Indian firms have created in the United States. And the opportunities for small, medium and large American businesses in India are staggering.”

“Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley visited India, and came back with $60 million in two-way business. That is why Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear visited India three times and helped bring about a $7 billion private sector energy deal. That is why Norfolk has a sister-city alliance with Kochi in Kerala that has helped Virginia export nearly $300 million in goods to India each year,” Burns said.

He also lauded the recent economic reforms by the Indian government allowing Foreign Direct Investment in some of the key sectors in India like retail trade.

Referring to India’s increasing stake in shaping the international system and the importance of a strategic Indo-U.S partnership in multiple fields of mutual interest, Burns said that though there were issues where India and the U.S. didn’t see eye-to eye, both the countries were working towards defining a shared agenda to protect the mutual interests.