Guest blog post by Francisco J. Sánchez, Under Secretary for International Trade, International Trade Administration

There are amazing opportunities available to U.S. businesses in India.

That’s one of the main takeaways of my successful week-long trade mission focusing on Indian port infrastructure. Case in point: the two-way trade between India and the U.S. grew to $58 billion in 2011, and this upward trend is expected to continue in 2012.

The ports trade mission that we just concluded today–a first of its kind in India–was especially successful. Representatives from 12 U.S. organizations joined me on the trip, where we visited three different cities to facilitate as many partnerships as possible. The trade mission participants included dredging companies, port security companies, scanning technology providers, infrastructure, and transportation and logistics companies. With them the Ports of Baltimore and San Diego also joined to partner with companies and ports in India.

Guest blog post by Francisco J. Sánchez, Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Secretary, Department of Commerce

India has a bright future in solar energy.

Its renewable energy market is currently valued at $17 billion dollars, and is growing at an annual rate of 15 percent.  And remarkably, there is potential for even bigger things.

According to one estimate, to keep economic growth at current levels, India will need to add 150 gigawatts of capacity over the next five years. Clearly, there is both a market and a need for clean energy in India.  And, U.S. companies have the technology and products to meet these needs and help spur economic development. 

It’s a natural partnership.  

That’s why, yesterday, during my keynote speech at SOLARCON India 2011, I urged all parties to consider new partnerships with each other so that we can build a clean future together.  

Hosted in the city of Hyderabad, the trade event brought together a wide-range of business leaders, academics and government officials to exchange ideas about the clean energy sector. Although estimates about the attendance are unavailable at this time, just last year, it drew over 4,000 people from over 30 countries.    

This year, there was incredible energy and excitement in the air. For U.S. firms, India’s solar market represents a huge opportunity to get involved in a booming sector in a growing market, resulting in thousands, if not millions, of jobs for people in both countries.

After the final day in Mumbai, Secretary Locke and delegates from the 24 U.S. businesses who travelled to India on the six-day high-tech trade mission to India wrapped up their business.

Secretary Locke said, “This trade mission was a resounding success.  For some companies on our trip, ‘success’ was an initial meeting or consultation with Indian government or business leaders that will lead to deals down the road. For others, success was more immediate with some companies leaving India on the cusp of making multimillion dollar sales.  Either way, these companies have made important inroads into one of the most promising high-technology markets in the world.”

On Friday morning, Secretary Locke met with the executive committee of the U.S- India Importers’ Council, an initiative developed to support Indian companies that import goods and services from the United States.  The mission of this Council is to advance President Obama’s National Export Initiative, and to support the efforts of Indian companies that import products from the U.S.
 
Locke then visited Mumbai’s legendary Dabbawala Association organization to learn about their unique logistics operation that delivers home-cooked food to hundreds of thousands of people daily.  Association president Raghunath Medge provided Locke with an overview of the organization’s labeling and sorting methodology and the dispatch process. Dabbawala’s lunch delivery service has been cited as a model of entrepreneurship and supply chain management at the grass-roots level. In the afternoon, Locke engaged in multiple bilateral meetings with Indian officials.

Guest blog post by Dr. Tonghuo Shang, Vice President, Technology Development and Asia Operations at Kulite Semiconductor Products, Inc.

Ed Note: Kulite is the world leader in pressure transducer technology, serving several high technology industries such as Aerospace, Flight Test, Automotive, Motor Sports and Industrial Processes.

Today I just concluded my portion of the journey with the India High Tech Mission. While I regret that I won’t be traveling to Mumbai with fellow delegates, the fact that most Kulite customers are in the Bangalore area necessitates that I stay here and meet them individually. This trip is a memorable experience for me, in what Kulite has achieved, as well as in the friendships with other delegation members.

At the start of the mission Secretary Locke asked delegates to evaluate the mission, and to identify the factors that made it a success. I think the most important factor is the elevated profile that a government delegation brings. With Secretary Locke we were able to listen to several key Indian Ministers and hear their ambitious plans for India, and their upbeat economic outlook. The US Commercial Service, being a government entity, is also a valuable and effective resource. Case in point - on Tuesday, the delegation met with the General Managers of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited. After listening to their presentation I requested a follow-on meeting with one of the HAL divisions. The in-country staff located the contact point and developed a meeting plan within two hours!

This mission brings tangible benefits to Kulite. I am able to evaluate the market potential in a very short amount of time, and sees clear business growth in the next two years. I would like to thank the entire DoC team for their tireless effort putting this together. The seamless planning and personal attention to each company is remarkable. Trade missions like this are highly recommended, especially for small and mid-sized companies when resources are limited.

Good luck to my fellow delegates in Mumbai.