India is the USA's 13th Largest Trade Partner

India is one of the fastest growing trading partners for the US and is now in 13th position. This is according to the US Ambassador to India Madam Nancy J Powel. In a recent statement, she said that India has improved the rankings from 25th position in one decade. This was announced as she addressed the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce members in Puducherry. She was optimistic that the bilateral trade between the two countries would past the 100 billion-dollar mark shortly.

In 1995, the value of commodities imported from the US was over 3 billion dollars and over 2012 the exports had increased to over 22 billion dollars which over the last year increased by 1 billion dollars. On the other hand, the exports of commodities from India to the US increased by 41 billion dollars which increased by 10% from 2011, which shows that the sum trade value of both countries will soon go past $100 billion.

She made it clear that there is still more room for the improvement of trading activities between the two countries, because there are many opportunities that have not been utilized. "Increasing our mutual trade and investment opportunities was one of the top objectives of Vice-President (Joe) Biden during his trip to New Delhi and Mumbai two weeks ago. We look forward to continuing this dialogue during Prime Minister Singh's visit to Washington this fall," she said.

US mission staff help US companies in their efforts to export to India assisting in strengthening commercial links through their activities that encourage trading delegations and connections via regular visits. She said that the increased numbers of US mayors and governors leading various delegations to different cities in India have a great impact on the trading relations between India and the US.

An example of a planned delegation that will be led by Governor Terry E Branstad in September will leave Iowa and go through Chennai, New Delhi, Mumbai and eventually Hyderabad. The sole aim of the delegation is to search for partnerships in biotechnology, manufacturing and IT solutions. She also said that last June commercial service staffs from the US who were in Chennai accompanied the delegation of the business people from Madurai in support of their visit. They went to a trade fair in New York.

The Envoy gave an assurance that the United States will give empowerment to more Indian companies, who will explore the market through an initiative dubbed ‘SelectUSA’.  She said that the SelectUSA summit to be held from 31st October to 1st November in Washington is a huge opportunity for Indian companies looking to invest in the US. She urged companies in Puducherry to join the caravan of the US-Indian trade relationship.