Business
Low costs, tech focused & more: How can Indian exports stay competitive? Explained – The Times of India
The global economy is slowing down and trade dynamics are undergoing a change.At a time like this, India needs to evaluate its export strategies, with focus on long-term competitiveness through technology, cost efficiency, and domestic production, Ajay Srivastava, founder of the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) explainedSpeaking to ANI, Srivastava said, “The focus should be on lowering production costs, simplifying regulations, and accelerating ease of doing business especially in logistics, compliance, and taxation.” He also highlighted the need for a dual approach, which combines foreign technology partnerships with investment in reverse engineering and product localisation.Referring to the electronics, machinery and digital technology sector, the GTRI chief said, “What India consumes, it must also be able to make and export.” Meanwhile, on the international trade front, negotiations with the US are advancing well, even though no official announcement has been made.India is also quietly reviewing sectoral risks and preparing to mitigate potential disruptions by diversifying trade away from the US and boosting domestic capabilities.Regarding Europe, Srivastava confirmed that the India-UK free trade agreement has been signed and is pending ratification in the British Parliament. “(The EU deal) is in an advanced stage of negotiation, with most chapters close to closure,” he said, adding that both agreements are expected to open new markets, strengthen investor confidence, and integrate supply chains with Europe.Global financial trends are another key factor for India. “When the Fed raises rates, money tends to flow back to the US, putting pressure on the rupee, widening the current account deficit, and tightening liquidity,” Srivastava warned. He stressed that careful macroeconomic management and strong domestic growth drivers will be critical to managing currency volatility while sustaining exports.On the question of India staying out of trade blocs like RCEP and CPTPP, Srivastava said the country is not at a disadvantage. “Nearly 80% of global trade still takes place at non-preferential tariff rates. Rather than rushing to join every bloc, India should focus on improving export competitiveness, logistics efficiency, and ease of doing business.”“India, rather than waiting for global stability, should use this ‘no-rules’ phase to rebuild the foundations of competitiveness across industry, agriculture, and services,” he said. Investments in green and digital technologies, large-scale manufacturing, and secure supply chains are key, he added.On addressing the trade deficit with China, he said India needs “large-scale reverse engineering, technology adaptation, and supply chain localisation” in sectors like electronics, machinery, and chemicals. “Over time, such capability-building will not only narrow the trade gap but also make India a credible global supplier,” he said.He concluded by urging coordinated action from both government and industry. “The government must provide a stable trade policy, faster clearances, and targeted incentives,” he said. “The private sector, in turn, should invest in R&D, design, branding, and technology partnerships to create globally competitive products.”“In a slower, more fragmented global economy, the winners will be those who build resilience at home while shaping trade on their own terms,” Srivastava said.
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“Amazon to date has invested USD 40 billion in India since 2010. Now we will invest another USD 35 billion by 2030 across all our businesses in India,” Agarwal said.
Amazon To Invest USD 35 Bn In India By 2030 With Focus On AI-Driven Digitalisation
E-commerce giant Amazon is set to invest a mega-investment of USD 35 billion, over Rs 3.14 lakh crore, in India by 2030 across its businesses with a focus on AI-driven digitisation, export growth and job creation, a senior company official said on Wednesday.
Senior VP Emerging Markets, Amit Agarwal, made the announcement during the Amazon Smbhav Summit, saying the company has set a target to quadruple exports from India to USD 80 billion from about USD 20 billion.
“Amazon to date has invested USD 40 billion in India since 2010. Now we will invest another USD 35 billion by 2030 across all our businesses in India,” Agarwal said.
Amazon’s investment plan is two times of Microsoft’s investment plan of USD 17.5 billion and close to 2.3 times that of Google’s USD 15 billion investment plan by 2030.
With this investment, Amazon will become the largest foreign investor in India, according to a Keystone report compiled from publicly available data.
In May 2023, Amazon announced plans to invest USD 12.7 billion in India by 2030 into its local cloud and AI infrastructure across Telangana and Maharashtra. The company has already invested USD 3.7 billion in India between 2016 and 2022.
The company has invested at scale towards building physical and digital infrastructure, including fulfilment centres, transportation networks, data centres, digital payments infrastructure and technology development.
According to the Keystone report, Amazon has digitized over 12 million small businesses and enabled USD 20 billion in cumulative ecommerce exports, while supporting approximately 2.8 million direct, indirect, induced and seasonal jobs across industries in India in 2024.
(With inputs from agencies)
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Business
Stock market today: Nifty50 opens above 25,850; BSE Sensex up over 100 points – The Times of India
Stock market today: Nifty50 and BSE Sensex, the Indian equity benchmark indices, opened in green on Wednesday. While Nifty50 was above 25,850, BSE Sensex was up over 100 points. At 9:17 AM, Nifty50 was trading at 25,865.25, up 26 points or 0.099%. BSE Sensex was at 84,804.28, up 138 points.Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited says, “As the year slowly draws to a close the market structure is becoming challenging. Heavy selling in the broader market is justified since valuations have been elevated and kept high only on the strength of liquidity. This is unsustainable. But the weakness in the overall market and sustained selling by FIIs are a bit disappointing. A major concern is the excessive delay in the finalisation of the US-India trade deal. A remark by President Trump yesterday that action should be taken on India for dumping rice in the US hurt sentiments further.”“Fundamentals are turning in favour of India. Higher growth and corporate earnings are achievable in the quarters ahead. The fiscal and monetary stimulus provided this year have started producing results. The excessively low inflation rate, which impacted nominal GDP growth, also will start rising in the coming quarters. This is significant since corporate earnings growth will be influenced more by nominal GDP growth rather than by real GDP growth. The fact that valuations in the large cap segment have become fair is another positive. These positive factors will start weighing on the market soon. Investors have to keep faith and wait patiently for the fundamentals to play out.”The S&P 500 declined on Tuesday as investors anticipated hawkish Federal Reserve messaging despite potential rate cuts. JPMorgan contributed significantly to the benchmark index’s decline following the bank’s announcement of substantial 2026 expenses.Asian markets showed modest gains following Wall Street’s subdued session, with investors awaiting the Federal Reserve’s final interest rate decision of the year.Foreign portfolio investors recorded net sales of Rs 3,760 crore on Tuesday, whilst domestic institutional investors showed net purchases of Rs 6,225 crore.(Disclaimer: Recommendations and views on the stock market, other asset classes or personal finance management tips given by experts are their own. These opinions do not represent the views of The Times of India)
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