Aditya Birla Group eyes more US investments, cites strong Trump-India ties

Aditya Birla Group Chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla on Sunday said his group is looking to invest further in the US as President-elect Donald Trump has been "positively" inclined towards India in the past.

"We are looking forward to investing more in the US. Going by his (Donald Trump's) past record, he is positively inclined towards India and (besides that) he also has a good bond with Narendra Modi," Birla told PTI video services on the sidelines of the silver jubilee celebrations of the Aditya Birla Group's scholarships programme in Mumbai.

Aditya Birla Group is a strong player in the metals and chemicals sector in the US through its businesses -- Novelis and Aditya Birla Chemicals.

In June this year, the group announced an investment of USD 50 million in a manufacturing and research and development (R&D) centre in Texas.

Stating that it is "too early" to comment on how Trump's second tenure as President of the US will be for the industry, Birla said, "Going by the past experience with Trump, it was very positive. He is pro-industry."  Birla also said the recycling and rolling plant in Alabama (US), which was announced in May this year, will commence in the next fiscal year.

"It is on time. It will be a high-technology, high-precision rolling mill and first kind facility," he said.

The Aditya Birla Group Chairman added that Vodafone turnaround plans remain on track.