The Chinese invasion of India Inc

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The Chinese invasion of India Inc
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After alleged territorial incursion, China is slowly, but definitely invading the major driver of Indian economy, India Inc. That said, this time it is good news for the country. Though China became India’s largest trading partner in 2008, it is only now that the investments have started flowing into the country. News of plans of Chinese companies to invest $5-10 billion into the country is good news indeed, given the FDI by Chinese companies into India during the last decade and a half was less than $ 1.5 billion.

Starting this year, the spate of announcements proves that China is on an investment high. Wanda, China's largest commercial real estate developer, announced investment worth $10 billion in Haryana. SAIC Motor, China's largest carmaker, proposed to buy GM's Gujarat facility. About 100 small and medium Chinese enterprises have promised investments worth $1 billion.

The Chinese incursion has been the best news so far for the start-ups as a major part of these Chinese investments flowed in this sector last year. From Alibaba’s investment in Paytm and Snapdeal to Didi Kuaidi’s investment in Ola, Chinese companies are fast recognising the potential of this sector. The year kickstarted with China's online travel company Ctrip picking up a strategic stake in Makemytrip and Baidu starting discussions with internet startups. This comes after Alibaba's high profile investments in Snapdeal and Paytm last year. Another Chinese internet giant Tencent Holdings, also entered the field with investments on Bangalore-based healthcare startup Practo last year.

They are also targeting large cap stocks. State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), a fully-owned subsidiary of People's Bank of China recently invested in some of India's pedigree large cap stocks.

These investments point towards the country’s growing affiliation towards its neighbour. So much so that many Indian companies are eyeing Chinese investments to top their US investments. Is this a start towards a better future of the bittersweet relation these two countries share!
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Have a complete look at the journey here.

(Image credits: indiatimes)