India Inc. on Wednesday welcomed the blocking of anti-outsourcing Bill in the U.S. Senate even as a senior U.S. administration official said economic engagement between India and the U.S. would continue to rise.
The National Association of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom), which has been lobbying hard against the bill, heaved a sigh of relief over the development and hoped that the U.S. government would not take any step which hampered free trade between the two nations. Notably, of India's $50 billion IT and ITES exports, the U.S. accounts for about 60 per cent.
“The anti-offshoring bill was more of an electoral rhetoric. We had met the Congressmen, key government officials and the American industry last week and expressed our concerns against the protectionist measures,” Nasscom vice-president Ameet Nivsarkar said.
A high-level Nasscom delegation was recently in the U.S. and met several senior officials regarding the proposed legislation.
Reacting to the development, FICCI Secretary-General Amit Mitra said: “We have been emphasising that protectionist measures of any kind are not in the long-term interest of anyone. They would only weaken the foundation of free and fair trade.”
“We believe that the majority of the U.S. Senate has appreciated this reality and kept in mind the larger interest of the U.S. economy, its corporations and global economy. The opposition from several U.S. business groups, including the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) to this bill shows that these groups realise that such measures would only hurt the competitiveness of U.S. companies and job creation,” he added.
Similarly, Assocham president Swati Piramal said the anti-outsourcing bill was against free trade and a non-tariff barrier. Offshoring creates job opportunities for both the countries — those which outsource and the suppliers of services, so its win-win situation for both the parties, she added.
According to Ganesh Natarajan, Chairman of CII national committee on IT and CEO of Zensar Technologies: “Unemployment is a concern in the U.S. But they should understand that any protectionist barrier will deepen the recession. This kind of measures will not help create job in the United States.”
“Minor irritants”
U.S. Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Francisco Sanchez said such issues were minor irritants in the bilateral ties that could be easily managed.
“The key is not to focus on any specific conflict or irritant but how we manage those and how we take advantage of that opportunity,” said Mr. Sanchez, who is currently visiting India.
Stating that the U.S. market was the most open in the world, he said: “We want to see more Indian companies invest in the U.S. and we know that foreign direct investment is also like trade, a two-way street. Protectionism is not good for any country.”
