India well positioned to be fastest growing major economy: Chandrasekaran

India is well positioned to continue to be the fastest-growing major economy next year, which may mark the lowest global growth since the millennium began barring the pandemic and the global financial crisis, according to Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran.

In his New Year message to around 9.35 lakh employees of the Tata Group, he said increasing consumption, consumer confidence and investment will support India's growth story although the global environment has several risk factors, including the energy crisis in Europe, the battle to contain inflation to avoid recession, and ongoing geopolitical conflicts.

"Post-pandemic, India opened up, and we have returned to living our daily lives normally, in a year that saw the nation turn 75 years old. Business momentum has been strong for many of our companies," he wrote.

In the next year, Chandrasekaran said, "we are likely to see inflation gradually moderate. India is well positioned, and we will continue to be the fastest growing major economy, supported by increasing consumption, consumer confidence and investment."

However, he added, "Slowing global growth may act as a drag on output, but our rising share of global manufacturing should provide some buffer/insulation."

The global environment has several risk factors, including the energy crisis in Europe, the battle to contain inflation to avoid recession, and ongoing geopolitical conflicts, he pointed out.

"Barring the pandemic and the global financial crisis, next year may mark the lowest global growth since the millennium began. We will need to keep careful watch on commodity price rises, in particular," Chandrasekaran said.

On the performance of the conglomerate in 2022 -- "an eventful year" , he said, "We have experienced significant milestones during the year, including the welcoming of Air India back to the Group; the launch of TataNeu; and Tata Motors passenger vehicles crossing 500,000 cars sold within a calendar year, with Tata EV cars accounting for 10 per cent."

There has been a good improvement and a strong performance of companies across the Group, Chandrasekaran said, adding the group's success came from its "relentless drive to lead, the remarkable dedication and talent we nurture".

"In each of our segments, we are continuing to make progress and raising the bar, be it in terms of performance, customer experience, quality, sustainability or innovation," he said.

He asserted that India is well placed and the Tata Group has tremendous opportunity in the midst of global transitions towards AI (artificial intelligence)/ML (machine learning), sustainability and diversified supply chains.

Tata group has launched new initiatives to participate in global supply chains, Chandrasekaran added.

On sustainability, he said a group-wide project "Aalingana"(embrace) has been devised with an approach encompassing three interconnected pillars -- reducing emissions to reach net zero by 2045; pioneering circular economies through sharing, reusing and recycling; and preserving and restoring nature and biodiversity.

"We are excited to accelerate this journey during 2023," Chandrasekaran said.

Against this backdrop, he wrote, "We face the future confidently to achieve more, not only for our businesses and shareholders, but our country and communities. We can shape this moment to set new standards in technology, manufacturing and sustainability.