American companies are also moving major portions of their operations abroad. IBM employs nearly 100,000 workers in India, HP has 26,000, Microsoft (MSFT) has 5,500, and Cisco (CSCO) has 5,000. Pfizer employs 4,000 in China and 2,300 in India. These companies are developing some of their most sophisticated products abroad, often to target the same markets.What’s more, foreign countries are increasingly up to the task. India’s outsourcing industry has moved from back office to business process to core R&D work once thought immune to outsourcing. Indian call-center operators such as Genpact are now developing processes to enhance patient care for American hospitals and reengineering financial operations for Australian banks. Top IT outsourcer Infosys is developing advanced hybrid structures for U.S. material manufacturers.
In Latin America, engineering and manufacturing capabilites of Indian companies need to be showcased in a big way. So, far I have seen too much emphasis on textiles and handicrafts. Overall, areas where Indian IP is strong like engineering, specialty chemicals need more exposure in Latin America. In the auto sector, there is an opportunity for smaller Indian auto component manufacturers to have more tie-ups with their counterparts in Argentina and Mexico.
RTTNews –
Suzuki Motor Corporation, Hyundai Motor Co., and Nissan Motor Co. are making India as a marketing hub for overseas sales of mini cars, as incentives lift demand for smaller, fuel-efficient autos. This year India outperformed China in auto exports and poses challenge to Thailand and South Korea, as an alternative production center in Asia., media reports said.The Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers data say India’s exports of mini cars and hatchbacks gained 44% between January and July to 20,138. Total exports, including vans, sport-utility vehicles and trucks, rose 18% to 229,809. Cars are exported to over 100 countries (excluding the US and Japan markets).
Jayesh Shroff, who helps manage around $7 billion of assets, including car maker shares at SBI Asset Management Co in Mumbai, said: “There is a worldwide shift toward fuel-efficient, compact cars. This offers a huge potential for India and it can emerge as a leader in the small car segment.”
Technorati Tags: auto, manufacturing, small cars, india
At a time when global auto majors are struggling, carmakers in India have been able to expand their overseas presence with exports from the country registering whopping 57.04% growth in the last fiscal.According to the figures released by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), passenger car exports from India touched 3,31,539 units in FY09 as against 2,11,112 units in the previous financial year.
Overall vehicle exports from India grew by 23.60% at 15,30,660 units in the last financial year, while the same stood at 12,38,333 units in the previous fiscal, SIAM said.
Technorati Tags: india, automotive, exports
About 60 percent of India’s outsourcing business comes from the United States, and 40 percent of the work is in the banking, insurance and financial services sectors.“We now have to look at other regions of the world, like Japan, the Middle East and the Nordic countries,” said Som Mittal, president of the National Association of Software and Services Companies, or Nasscom. “The current crisis has sharpened our realization that we cannot put all our eggs in the U.S. basket.”
Perhaps the biggest and most sustaining change has been its climb up the value chain of services in recent years — from back-office support functions to what the industry calls “knowledge process outsourcing,” which includes legal services, hardware network management and engineering design.
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- Automobiles-Auto-News By Industry-News-The Economic Times
MUMBAI: Tata Motors has acquired a 50.3% holding in Norway-based electric vehicle major Miljo Grenland/Innovasjon for Kroner 12 million (Rs 9.4 cr
ore). Its UK subsidiary, Tata Motors European Technical Centre, is the investment vehicle for the acquisition. The existing shareholders will retain the remaining stake in the company. ET had reported the development in its edition dated August 5, 2008.Miljo will produce electric vehicles based on Tata Motors’ products, besides manufacturing super polymer lithium ion batteries and developing related technologies. Electric car, or e-car, is the new super kid in the world of automobiles. The first such vehicle to be developed will be Indica EV. It is scheduled for launch in Europe in 2009.
Unlike existing e-vehicles, Indica EV will be capable of carrying four people. Analysts say the vehicle may attract buyers as there is no excise duty. Tata Motors believes that this investment in Miljo Grenland will help it realise its strategy to develop convenient, affordable and sustainable mobility solutions through electric and hybrid vehicles, according to the statement issued by the company.
Technorati Tags: tata, automotive
Describing Brazil as a place with spiraling inflation is ridiculous. Some copy editing mishap I presume.
The Economic Times
Larsen and Toubro Ltd (L&T), India’s largest engineering and construction conglomerate, will enter Brazil and South Africa by early next year.“We are planning to foray into South Africa and Brazil in all verticals – oil and gas, cement, paper and everything possible,” a top company official who is also responsible for business development in Brazil and South Africa told IANS on condition of anonymity.
“We should be stationed in the country by this year end or early next year,” he said, even while admitting that the planning was at a nascent stage, and that the exact way forward was to be crystallised.
When asked why the company had chosen Brazil where not only are operating costs high but there is also spiralling inflation in the economy, he said: “Profit margins will touch a new high as we can keep our prices higher as compared to any other country.”
The official said the company’s bottomlines are already under pressure due to the liquidity crunch that as pushed up capital costs.
L&T is a Mumbai-based Indian conglomerate, with diverse interests such as construction, hydraulic equipment, electrical and electronic power services, fertiliser projects, medical electronics, financial services and information technology.
In a pointer to the growing stature of the Indian car market globally, Japan’s Honda Motor Co has decided to set up a research and development (R&D) centre for cars in the country to understand the requirements of the market better. Globally, this would be the one of the seven R&D centres for the company.
“India is an important market for Honda worldwide. As the market matures, bringing the R&D function into the market becomes very important,” Takeo Fukui, Honda’s global president and CEO, told TOI.
Technorati Tags: automotive, R&D
The government of Uruguay, in a move to expand investment in new industries and technologies, has set aside land for an electric vehicle assembly plant expected to begin construction next month by US electric car pioneer ZAP.The State of Montevideo has granted an acre of land to ZAP within an industrial and technology park established for projects of national interest through CAPIT (Comision Administradora del Parque Industrial y Tecnologico del Cerro). According to Fernando Cancela, ZAP’s Director of International Affairs, ZAP plans to break ground by next month on a comprehensive facility for the assembly of light electric vehicles, including the Xebra brand, three-wheeled electric sedans and trucks, the ZAPPY3 scooter, and ZAP electric bicycles for distribution throughout South America.
MERCOSUR is a trade agreement established in South America to promote free trade and fluid movement of goods, people and currency. The region represents a population of over 250 million in Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. MERCOSUR-certified products exported within the region enjoy little or no taxes.
Technorati Tags: electric vehicles
This whole talk of currency instability is slightly dated. In the 80s and early 90s, when debt was denominated in $ currencies came under pressure from rapid FDI outflows – 80s era of hyperinflation comes to mind.
With the spectacular increase in commodity prices, starting in 2001, many countries in LatAm have been able to build substantial current account surpluses, add to their currency reserves and re-denominate debt in local currency. This had provided needed currency stability. Its amazing to know that the Brazilian real which was effectively worthless at the end of the 80s is now the only foreign currency holding of Warren Buffett!
Analysis-Markets-The Economic Times
In a bid to spur Indian medium scale companies to take advantage of foreign markets, India Trade Promotion Organisation is exploring opportunities in Latin American countries.“There is investment potential in certain Latin American countries for Indian Inc. Big players like Tatas, Godrej, Mahindra and Mahindra, Aditya Birla group have already made their presence felt in sectors like IT, FMCG, auto, fibre etc. But the presence of mid size companies can hardly be felt,” said V Narayanan, manager, ITPO.
According to Narayanan, mid size companies can find fortunes in engineering goods, chemical products, textile, plastic products, pharmaceuticals, artificial jewelery & cosmetic articles, to generate good profit margins.
US and UK-based products are being sold at a higher price in countries like Chile, Peru, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico whereas Indian companies can offer almost the same quality product at a cheaper rate, ITPO is of opinion.“A couple of other factors also create a conducive environment for Indian mid-size companies. Those are cultural similarities and similar taste of foods. This can result in a sizable demand for Indian products,” Narayanan said.
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Larsen & Toubro Ltd, India’s top engineering and construction company, said on Wednesday it had received an order worth $160 million from Brazil’s Petrobras.The order, for 10 reactors and 12 coke drums, is expected to be delivered in 2010/11, it said.
