A 16-member delegation from the Confederation of Metal Sector Employer Organisation, Spain, visited Mumbai early November to seek opportunities in India's metal sector. The session was organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry.
Shubhada M. Rao, Chief Economist, Yes Bank Ltd, said, "Spain still continues to be an attractive destination for India. The bilateral trade between India and Spain was $2.3 billion in 2007; products like food processors, chemicals, ceramics and telecommunication will be of interest to Spain."
Javier F. Dufol, Assistant Vice President, the Spanish confederation, said, "We already have many investments in India and vice versa. Now, we are trying to learn how your system works in legal and banking terms."
Rao added that the Indian market should be explored by investors. In the telecommunication sector, there are about 9 million new subscribers. However, one can't ignore the rising sectors like entertainment, auto components, pharmaceuticals, food processing which have contributed to India's economy.
"In August 2008, India's economy saw disruptions in equity and currency markets even though growth remains very attractive by FDIs. Due to de-leveraging and deep risk aversion, it has impacted the Indian currency to depreciate by 20 per cent. The reasons why India is not affected by global crisis is because of strong domestic demand rate, the $258 billion reserves acts as a cushion for any external shocks and robust banking sectors with a capital adequacy of 13 per cent as an overall sector," she said.
In the next couple of years, India's economic growth will move on to 8 to 9 per cent from the present 6 to 7 per cent. Maharashtra contributes 13 per cent GDP and is the second largest contributor of industrial output. The road and power sectors are the two key deficit areas for Maharashtra, where proper infrastructure should be put in place. "We need to expedite our efforts to attract more investors across the borders," said
Ranjit Mathure, Joint General Manager, International Sales, Essar Steel Ltd, who spoke about the steel industry.
The present flat steel consumption is 21.5 mtpa which will rise to 29.3 mtpa by 2011, a compound annual growth of 11 per cent. The estimated 8 million tonnes surplus by 2011 will turn India into a net exporter from a net importer and by 2013 the demand for steel will rise again. The way forward could be for steel companies owning processing facilities as a first step and distribution setups will be owned by steel companies.

— Shalini Nair