Indian Business Leaders Move Beyond Trade War To Take Ambitions Global

Increasingly, Indian companies are finding South East Asia the new land of opportunity, as are executives from other parts of the region.

Despite major geopolitical upheaval around the world, when Baker McKenzie recently surveyed 100 C-suite executives in India, we found a bullish business community, both on the domestic and international fronts. In fact, three quarters of mid-to-large sized Indian companies still plan to increase domestic investment by at least 10% over the next two years, while almost two-thirds of Indian companies are looking to increase their offshore investments by 10% or more, while another quarter are planning to increase their international investment by up to 10%. This is all the more positive in the face of currency pressure and recent political uncertainty.

These findings are part of a wider survey of 600 business leaders across the Asia-Pacific region. Our latest report, ‘The Age of Hyper Complexity: Asia Pacific Business and Legal Macro Trends’, with interesting views from Indian businesses.

In terms of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) deals involving Indian buyers, we see a clear expectation that deal making will continue to increase, with 7 in 10 Indian business leaders expecting a significant increase in M&A deals in their industry. In terms of where Indian businesses are looking to acquire and invest, domestic targets destinations still top the list, but South East Asia now runs a close second.