Modi's US visit may encourage more American firms to invest in India

INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi's visit to the United States may encourage more American companies to consider investing in the South Asian country as they look to reduce their reliance on China for manufacturing-related activities.

The United States is the third largest source of foreign investment for India, with over $60 billion invested between 2000 and 2023, according to official data.

Following are some recent investment announcements, mostly by U.S. companies:

Tesla: Elon Musk said Modi was pushing the electric-car maker to make a "significant investment" in the country, adding that such an announcement was expected soon.

Micron Technology: India's cabinet approved the chipmaker's $2.7 billion plan for a new semiconductor testing and packaging unit, a senior government source said, ahead of Modi's state visit to the US.

Modi met Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra in Washington on Wednesday (21) and invited the company to boost semiconductor manufacturing in India, the Indian government said in a statement on Thursday (22).

Boeing: The aircraft-maker plans to invest about $24 million in India to set up a logistics centre for airplane parts. The announcement preceded the company bagging an order for 220 jets from Air India.

Amazon.com: Amazon Web Services said it planned to invest $13 billion in India by 2030 to build its cloud infrastructure and create thousands of jobs

Apple: The US tech giant opened its stores in Mumbai and Delhi in April. It has been trying to make India a bigger manufacturing base and has started manufacturing several products there through contract electronics makers Foxconn, Wistron Corp and Pegatron Corp.

During his visit to India in April, CEO Tim Cook said Apple was "committed to growing and investing across the country."

Foxconn: The Taiwanese contract manufacturer plans to invest $500 million to set up manufacturing plants in the south Indian state of Telangana and almost $968 million in neighbouring Karnataka. The investments are expected to create more than 70,000 jobs, Indian officials have said.

The Apple supplier also plans to build a factory in India to manufacture AirPods, Apple's wireless earphones.

Cisco Systems: The US networking equipment maker will begin manufacturing from India as it looks to diversify its global supply chain. It has set a target of $1 billion in production and exports from India over the next few years.

Walmart: The retail giant's CEO met Modi during his India visit last month and reiterated that the company planned exports from India worth $10 billion a year by 2027.

General Electric: Modi invited General Electric to play a "greater role" in aviation and renewable energy sectors in India in a meeting with CEO Lawrence Culp on Wednesday, the Indian government said.

Applied Materials: Modi invited Applied Materials to contribute towards strengthening the "semiconductor ecosystem" in India and developing "process technology and advanced packaging capabilities" in a meeting with CEO Gary Dickerson in Washington on Wednesday.

(Reuters)