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Daley asks India to open up insurance sector

United States Secretary of Commerce William Daley today asked the Indian authorities to open up the insurance market for creating a better environment for foreign banks and financial companies.

Addressing the members of Indo-American Chamber of Commerce in Bombay, Daley said that further opening up of the Indian financial sector would attract enormous amount of investment flows into various infrastructure development projects in India.

Earlier, at a business meeting organised by Confederation of Indian Industry and the International Law Institute, the US secretary insisted that the American lawyers and law consultancy firms should be allowed to practice in India in order to attract more American companies to set up their joint ventures here.

US investors are more attracted to an investment environment where familiar, unrestricted and dependable legal and financial services exist, he said.

The presence of foreign law firms with offices around the globe can also better serve Indian businesses as they look to expand their international business opportunities.

The US Secretary of Commerce, accompanied by a high-level US business delegation, today wrapped up his six-day trade mission in India by emphasising that the Indian authorities should lower import tariffs that restrict US access to the Indian market.

"I have made it clear that the scope of US trade and investment depends on Indian leaders continued commitment to reforms based on deregulation, liberalisation and open markets," he said.

Describing the last 50 years of Indo-American business relationship as an era of missed opportunities, Daley said that the time is now right for setting up joint ventures, business partnerships and investment that could benefit working people in both nations, even as they generate closer political and cultural relations between two nations.

He said the Clinton administration is committed to embracing opportunities and elevating the level of US-Indian cooperation across the spectrum of issues of concern to our nations. "We are proud that the US is India's number on source of foreign investment which is likely to go up by an additional US dollar five billion over the next four years.

Daley said that the US investors and businessmen are more attracted to an investment environment where familiar, unrestricted, an dependable and financial services exist. "It is a fact that most American companies will be willing to come to India if their lawyers are allowed to practice here," he said. "The presence of foreign law firms, with offices around the globe, can also better serve Indian businesses, as they look to expand their international business opportunities."

The commerce secretary also stressed on the need for India to further open up its financial services market encouraging foreign banks and insurance companies, and added that it would provide a critical source of infrastructure investment capital in addition to inflow of technology and broader range of financial products and services.

Talking about the much-discussed intellectual property rights, he said that India has a world class copyright statue. "India should now aspire to world-class patent protection to safeguard its wealth of scientific expertise and achievement. "Without a strong guarantee of protection, Indian firms will have no incentive to harness their creative potential and foreign firms are reluctant to introduce their latest cutting edge technologies to India, he said.

"Strong patent laws provide much of the incentive for innovation and invention," Daley said, "They would give a strong boost to India's talented scientific community. Indian universities, research institutions, pharmaceutical companies and technology firms would reap benefits from it.

"It is in India's own interest to improve patent protection. We encourage India to move speedily towards full compliance with the World Trade Organisation agreement on trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights," the US commerce secretary said.

Talking about the Indian political scenario, he said that despite the current political uncertainties, the economic transition is well under way and India is committed to the economic reforms.

UNI