India has emerged as the third largest source of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) for United Kingdom (UK) after United States (US) and France in terms of number of projects.
According to a recent report released by UK Trade and Industry (UKTI), the U.S. remained the largest source of inward investment, with a total of 564 projects in 2014-15, followed by France (124 projects) and India (122 projects).
During the year, investment from India increased by 65 per cent. This resulted in creation of 7,730 jobs as well as protection of 1,620 jobs.
The key sectors where Indian companies invested include healthcare, agri-tech, food and drink.
As per the Inward Investment Report 2014-15 of UKTI, 70 countries invested a record £1 trillion in UK in 2014-15, making it Europe’s top FDI destination.
“India and the UK share a long-standing, highly collaborative relationship, fuelling the prosperity of both countries and we greatly value our association with India. The fact that in 2014-15 Indians were the third largest job creators in the UK is a tremendous testimony to the strength of our ties, while the UK is also the largest G20 investor in India, proving the two-way relationship. As Prime Minister Modi said, when the UK and India work together, we are ‘an unbeatable combination,” Sir James Bevan KCMG, British Commissioner to India said in a statement.
“At a time when global FDI flows have fallen, investors from India understand that the UK is welcoming, diverse and open for business,” he added.
The annual investment figures from UKTI for the 2014-15 financial year show that UK has attracted 12 per cent more FDI projects compared to the previous year.
Indian Venture Capital Fund Vistaar Group has been named in the report as a key foreign investor in the creative industry for establishment of post production studio at MediaCity, Manchester. The fund plans to invest £13 million this year and £20 million over the next five years as per the report.
