Budget 2014: American Corporate Houses Ready to Pump Money into India

WASHINGTON: Anticipating major economic reforms in the maiden budget to be presented by the new Indian government, Corporate America has said it is ready to invest billions of dollars in India but the budget must match "pragmatism with unbridled enthusiasm".

Through this budget, the Obama Administration, policy makers, corporate sector and economists in the U.S. are hoping to see a strong sign of a the major economic reforms which were promised by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his election campaign.

At the same time, they are also expecting some tough unpopular measures to be announced, which India watchers in the U.S. believe are necessary to bring the economy back on track and revive the annual growth rate of more than eight percent.

Corporate America is hoping that Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, who will present the budget, would bring in an era of clarity, predictability and transparency in the system that would help in creating an investment-friendly environment.

U.S. India Business Council (USIBC) sees this budget as an extremely important opportunity for India's administration to begin to meet the high expectations of both Indian and international industry, said USIBC acting president Diane Farrell.

"The global community is ready, with billions of dollars in long-term capital, to increase investment in India," Farrell said.

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