Recently I attended the US-India Business Summit West, in Silicon
Valley. The stellar array of speakers was capped by a closing keynote
from former US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, making the case for
a global alignment of nations to promote “free people and free
markets”. The US-India Business Council, which represents US business
interests in India, naturally expressed concern over the policy
uncertainties and lack of some key economic reforms in India. The pause
on FDI in multi-brand retailing and the recent Budget pronouncements on
taxes, seemingly threatening arbitrary discretion in making tax claims
retroactively, figured prominently in these concerns.
Panels on innovation and investing were the most enlightening,
however, almost exclusively featuring entrepreneurs and investors of
Indian origin. As one would expect from those trying to make the future,
either through implementing new ideas or funding them, there was a
quiet optimism that provided some balance to the macro concerns
expressed at other times during the day, which also dominate the
headlines. This is not to say that the only optimism came from Indian
Americans. Senior executives from Cisco, VMWare and Walt Disney
International also gave examples of how India represents opportunities,
or how it can take advantages of emerging opportunities.
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