Search the Internet          Tips  Sites: Finance, Investment

UK proposes to launch new initiative to promote trade

Britain, which is the largest single investor in India exceeding £3 billion, proposes to launch a new initiative for encouraging bilateral co-operation in small and medium enterprises, UK's business ambassador Lord Swraj Paul said on Monday.

"We are particularly keen to encourage SMEs (small and medium enterprises) into the Indian market. Hence the creation of the 'Enterprise Initiative -- India', an innovative trade development campaign to broker marriages between British and Indian small and medium-sized companies," Lord Paul told a seminar organised in Noida, under the aegis of the Indo-British Partnership.

The new 'Outreach' programme to promote trade and investment links has already resulted in an impressive 100 local companies wishing to engage with the British Trade International team led by John Dennis over the next few days.

The 'Outreach' event in Noida, which "we are all part of today will help build a closer and lasting relationship between public and private enterprises and the commercial team from the British High Commission," Lord Paul said.

Bilateral trade between India and Britain grew by 30 per cent last year and is now worth £5 billion per year, Lord Paul said, adding "We are now seeing an increasing amount of Indian investment going into the UK".

"I want to build on this impressive trading relationship to improve trade and investment dramatically between India and the UK," the London-based industrialist asserted.

A masterplan has been drawn up in Noida, which would apportion 20,000 hectares of land for setting up industrial establishments in a planned and phased manner in the next ten years.

This offered immense opportunity for boosting British investments in India, Lord Paul said quoting OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) that the UK is now the world's largest outward investor spending $199.3 million in 1999.

"There are a number of ingredients to the success of our relationship in bilateral trade and investment -- first and foremost I would put the hard work of individual Indian and British businessmen living the reality of day-to-day business, researching markets, knocking on doors, writing proposals, winning orders and building long-term relationship," he said.

Listing the steps taken by Britain to accord a fillip to trade and investment, Lord Paul said the UK has already expanded its commercial network opening up new British Trade Offices in Bangalore and Hyderabad which are in addition to traditional commercial departments in Delhi, Bombay, Madras and Calcutta.

Business Information Centres have also been set up in Pune, Bhopal and Chandigarh, he said.

"The core of our commercial work is identifying new opportunities, helping new entrants to the market and helping existing business to prosper," Lord Paul said.

As many as 60,000 UK companies are registered on the TradeUK website to facilitate promotion of joint ventures.

Tell us what you think of this report