The Australian government is in the process of upping its business profile in India with the opening of Trade Commissions in key Indian cities adding to the augmentation of its Consular offices in Mumbai and Chennai, Peter Yuile, Deputy CEO and Executive Director, Government and Corporate Services, Australian Trade Commission, Canberra, has said.
“The scaling up to 11 points of presence in India, which is comparable to Australian engagement in China, is a tangible expression of Australia's keenness to open up new business relationships with its fastest growing trade partner,” Mr. Yuile told The Hindu on Thursday.
According to him, the agreement for a “comprehensive and enduring” partnership inked between the Prime Ministers of the two countries and ongoing negotiations to firm up a bilateral Free Trade Agreement set the stage for a certain depth of relationship that could kick-start investments.
While bilateral trade has virtually doubled over the last five years aggregating an estimated 21 billion Australian dollars, Mr. Yuile sees the volume as just the tiny tip of what lies ahead as the two countries work out mutually beneficial partnerships in a broad spectrum of sectors.
“The key is to have mutually beneficial relationships as one-sided partnerships don't last long…and we need a depth of relationship to move the basic trust of a buying-selling, demand-supply association to the next level of trust for investments,” Mr. Yuile said.
It is pointed out that the feasibility study in connection with the FTA proposal estimated an increase in business in the region of 44-48 billion Australian dollars for both countries over a 20-year period.
The complementarity of resources, expertise and requirements is one of the strong predictors for a higher level of bilateral business in sectors ranging from infrastructure, clean energy, minerals, financial services, IT, logistics and agri-business.
The promotion of the green building initiative is another important area where there is a convergence of interest to reduce the carbon foot print. In fact, Mr. Yuile has led a 25-member delegation, the largest ever to south India, including architects, water management experts and early smoke warning system providers, to the ongoing Green Building Congress hosted by the Confederation of Indian Industry in Chennai.
“The idea is to promote understanding about the availability of Australian expertise in green building equipment and services, including retro-fitting of old buildings,” said Mr. Yuile.
Concurrent with the green building event in Chennai, the Business Club Australia programme is under way in Delhi offering informal networking opportunities to Australian and Indian businessmen on the sidelines of the Common Wealth Games. More than 2,000 Indian and Australian businessmen would be interacting over 22 informal sessions.
Business deals don't develop from cold starts; they need the protagonists to get warmed up, as Mr. Yuile says.
