Prime Minister Manmohan Singh met the top CEOs of Korean industries in Seoul Monday and sought larger monetary investments in India.
Noting that the bilateral trade had surged roughly to 65 percent after the implementation of the bilateral Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in Jan. 1, 2010, Singh stated that India and Korea had decided to revive their bilateral trade agreement aiming for $40 billion by 2015.
The Indian Prime Minister appreciated the consistency in highest growth rates despite global economic meltdown of the Korean companies.
"We in India admire the Korean people for the great economic and social progress they have registered. Despite the downturn in the global economy, Korea has sustained one of the highest growth rates among the OECD countries. These achievements are due to the determination, solid hard work and spirit of enterprise of the Korean people," said Singh.
Singh said: "India too is one of the fastest growing major economies of the world. Despite the adverse international environment, we have managed to maintain a growth rate of 7% per annum in the last few years. I am confident that the strong fundamentals of our economy will help us return to a sustained growth path of about 8-10% per annum in the coming years."
Singh lauded Korea for being one among the early investors to look at India as a strategic investment destination. "Korean giants like LG and Samsung are household names in India. Hyundai has a 25% market share in India's domestic passenger car industry," he added.
As Singh pressed for more investments from Korea, he said, "Investment from Korea is a priority for India. We will take pro-active steps to address investor grievances and improve the business climate in the country. Many States of our Union have been actively encouraging foreign investment and we will support these efforts. I urge Korean industry to have faith in India."
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister also asked small- and medium-sized Korean companies to come forward and make investments in Indian markets.
