Korea becomes the largest foreign investor in India
After many trips back and forth, I’ve always been struck by the prevalence of Korean products in India. There are ads for LG and Samsung appliances, Hyundai cars, and they seem to have collectively gotten the hang of building “locally appropriate” products, as opposed to attempting to go to market there with a “global standard” product.
From Newsweek on MSN (via Indian Economy Blog)
Sept. 19, 2005 issue - In one whopping megadeal, South Korea has become the largest foreign investor in Asia’s second emerging giant, India. On Aug. 31, Korean steelmaker Posco established a local subsidiary in the eastern Indian state of Orissa, paving the way for a controversial mill and mining complex that will cost the world’s fifth largest steelmaker $12 billion and employ some 40,000 workers once it’s fully operational in 2010.
South Korean firms like Hyundai, LG and SK Group have carved out a notable presence in the country—the world’s second largest and a potentially huge market for products like refrigerators, washing machines and television sets.
The Posco deal in Orissa, though, is a completely different sort of project. This is a big natural resources project, to line up access to iron and steel to meet increasing manufacturing demand in-country within India. In addition to a dire need for basic infrastructure improvements (roads, highways, and airports), more people are moving to separate homes, or larger homes, and filling them with more white goods and electronics.
Tags: india, korea
