Dear Members & Friends,

India is now truly a land of opportunity. Its economy is on the fulcrum of an ever-increasing growth curve. With positive indicators such as a stable 8-9 per cent annual growth, rising foreign exchange reserves, a booming capital market and a rapidly expanding FDI inflow, India has emerged as the second fastest growing major economy in the world.

According to the National Council for Applied Economic Research (NCAER), the Indian middle-class comprises 56 million people in house-holds earning US$ 4,400-21,800 a year. The upper middle and high-income urban household has grown from 14.6 million in 2000 to
38.2 million in 2007. According to a study by McKinsey Global Institute, aggregate consumption in India is expected to grow four-fold in real terms during the period, 2006-2025 to touch US$ 1.73 trillion from US$ 420.7 billion. Also, by then, the middle class will have grown almost 12 times, from 50 million in 2006 to 583 million in 2025.

Please find below some Quick Facts about India. (Part 1)

Industry/Manufacturing

* The National Stock Exchange has become the world's second fastest-growing bourse in terms of number of listed companies, while the Bombay Stock Exchange is the biggest bourse.

* Mobile phone production in India will grow at a rate of 28.3 per cent - from 31 million units in 2006 to 107 million in 2011

* India's market for business intelligence (BI) platforms grew by 35.6 per cent in 2005-06, making it Asia's fastest growing BI geography, says Gartner.

* Indian cement industry is poised to add 111 million tonnes (MT)  of annual capacity by the end of 2009-10 (FY10), riding on the back of an estimated 141 outstanding cement projects.

* India's steel production, growing at 15 per cent in the first half of 2007, is expected to touch 124 MT by 2011-12, going beyond an earlier official estimate of 80 MT.

* India's fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry has seen the launch of 251 new products up to October CY07, against 191 in the same period last year.

* India's telecom industry is expected to reach a size of US$ 87.33 billion by 2012, with a growth rate of over 26 per cent.

* The Indian biotechnology industry is growing 37 per cent annually, and is expected to become a US$ 5 billion industry by 2010.

* India remains the undisputed leader in offshore services, accounting for about 65-70 per cent of the global off  shoring pie, according to a recent research from Gartner Inc.

* The Indian animation industry is expected to touch US$ 950 million by 2009, as global players like Walt Disney, Imax, and Warner Bros tie up with Indian animation companies.

Part 2 of Quick Facts will be published soon.


Thank you and best regards.


“TOGETHER WE ACHIEVE EXCELLENCE”

Yours in MAICCI,