Though India has slipped three places to the 11th position in the latest A.T. Kearney Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Confidence Index, the country remains among the top investment destinations due to its market size and rapid economic growth, according to the annual survey for 2018.
A.T. Kearney FDI Confidence Index, which tracks the impact of likely political, economic and regulatory changes on the foreign investment preferences of CEOs and CFOs, placed the US in the top position for investment intentions with Canada rising to second place, while Germany fell to the third.
India fell out of the top 10 for the first time since 2015. It was ranked eighth last year.
The report said a possible factor for the fall could be the coming elections in India, as investors are likely to be monitoring political risks.
It also said the International Monetary Fund projects India's economy to grow at 7.4 per cent in 2018-19, the fastest by any major economy, while inward FDI flows have increased to a record high of around $45 billion in 2017.
"We are in a very exciting space of growth, opportunity and transformation. For long, India has been a very exciting destination for investors. And now especially with the current political stability and positive reforms environment, India will only gain its attractiveness as an investment destination," A.T. Kearney India MD and Country Head Vikas Kaushal said in a statement here.
"Notable reforms that have had a positive impact on India's attractiveness include the elimination of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board, a government agency responsible for reviewing all potential foreign investment, and the liberalisation of foreign investment thresholds for the retail, aviation, and biomedical industries," the statement said.
According to the report, Japan, the US, the UK, and Singapore consistently serve as large sources of FDI for India, while the service sector is a target of particular interest for investors.
The government's Economic Survey 2017-2018 noted that inward FDI into the service sector will grow 15 per cent in 2018.
--IANS
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