Return of the India Story

The government's path-breaking reforms, coupled with inherent strength, place India at the heart of a global economic revival.

- Jitendra Sanghvi

We are living in amore complexworld than everbefore and, there-fore, in an interesting time. The world is yet to fully recover from the shock of Lehman Brothers collapse in 2008 and the financial crisis that followed. The financial crisis assumed the dimension of an economic crisis and is now creeping into the politics of developed countries. Economic growth is below potential in most parts of the industrial world. Central banks are still struggling to avert deflation with ever-expanding balance sheets.

Protectionist tendencies in developed economies are spreading to other parts of the world and hurting global growth. There is an antiglobalisation mood sweeping across developed countries. This is clearly reflected in the Brexit, the rise of nationalist parties in Europe, appeal of Donald Trump - the Republican Party candidate for the US presidential election - and a tilt towards bilateral and regional economic ties in place of a global trading system envisioned by the World Trade Organization.

According to a recent report of the International Monetary Fund, 2016 will be the fifth year in a row with global gross domestic product (GDP) growth below its long-term average (1990-2007) of 3.7 per cent. With no signs of improvement, 2017 may not be any different.

The world is confronted with many grave problems. Russia is hit hard by a fall in oil prices. China is in the midst of a difficult economic rebalancing. Brazil is in economic and political turmoil and in the worst recession in decades. Saudi Arabia's finances are in shambles, and it has slashed its capital expenditure by 70 per cent. On top of it all, there is a political realignment of Europe.