12-Dec-2022: Foreign Direct Investment in Coal Sector

No foreign company is eligible to participate in auction for commercial mining as per extant policy. However, companies incorporated in India are eligible to participate.

Foreign Direct Investment of Rs.119.19 crores in FY-2022-23 has been made for one coal mine located in Jharkhand.

Government has reviewed the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy in the coal mining on 18.09.2019 allowing 100% FDI under automatic route for sale of coal, coal mining activities including associated processing infrastructure subject to the provisions of the Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Act, 2015 and Mines and Mineral (Development & Regulation) Act, 1957 as amended from time to time and other relevant Acts on the subject. Associated processing infrastructure includes coal washery, crushing, coal handling and separation (magnetic and non-magnetic). DPIIT has circulated consolidated FDI policy circular 2020 vide OM dated 17.12.2020.

Further, according to the Press Note 3 of 2020, the Central Government further amended the FDI Policy to prescribe a requirement to seek prior Government approval if such foreign direct investment is by an entity from a country which shares land borders with India or where the beneficial owner of such foreign direct investment into India is situated in or is a citizen of any such country.

All the currently operating coal mines have valid environmental clearances for the part of the mine which is in operation. For a mine to become operational environmental clearance is mandatory.

7-Dec-2022: Centre’s reforms result in consistent increase of FDI inflow; FDI grows from US $ 45.15 billion in 2014-2015 to US$ 84.84 billion in 2021-22

The reforms taken by Government have resulted in increased Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows in the country. FDI inflows in India stood at US $ 45.15 billion in 2014-2015 and have continuously increased since then, and India registered its highest ever annual FDI inflow of US$ 84.84 billion (provisional figures) in the financial year 2021-22, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry, Shri Som Parkash said in reply to a parliament question today.

'Make in India' is an initiative which was launched on 25th September, 2014 to facilitate investment, foster innovation, build best in class infrastructure, and make India a hub for manufacturing, design, and innovation. It is one of the unique 'Vocal for Local' initiatives that promoted India's manufacturing domain to the world. The ‘Make in India’ initiative is not a state/district/city/area specific initiative, rather it is being implemented all over the country.

'Make in India' initiative has significant achievements and presently focuses on 27 sectors under Make in India 2.0. Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) coordinates action plans for 15 manufacturing sectors, while Department of Commerce coordinates 12 service sector plans. Investment outreach activities are done through Ministries, State Governments and Indian Missions abroad for enhancing International co-operation and promoting both domestic and foreign investment in the country.

In addition to ongoing schemes of various Departments and Ministries, Government has taken various steps to boost domestic and foreign investments in India. These include the introduction of Goods and Services Tax, reduction in Corporate tax rate, interventions to improve ease of doing business, FDI policy reforms, measures for reduction in compliance burden, policy measures to boost domestic manufacturing through public procurement orders, Phased Manufacturing Programme (PMP), to name a few.

The series of measures taken by the Government to improve the economic situation and convert the disruption caused by COVID 19 into an opportunity for growth includes Atmanirbhar packages, introduction of Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme in various Ministries, investment opportunities under National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) and National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP), India Industrial Land Bank (IILB), Industrial Park Rating System (IPRS), soft launch of the National Single Window System (NSWS), etc. An institutional mechanism to fast-track investments has been put in place, in the form of Project Development Cells (PDCs) in all concerned Ministries/ Departments of Government of India along with an Empowered Group of Secretaries (EGoS).

Keeping in view India’s vision of becoming ‘Atmanirbhar’ and to enhance India’s Manufacturing capabilities and Exports, an outlay of INR 1.97 lakh crore (over US$ 26 billion) has been announced in Union Budget 2021-22 for PLI schemes for 14 key sectors of manufacturing, starting from fiscal year (FY) 2021-22.

As per Economic Survey 2021-22, in spite of Covid related disruptions there is trend of positive overall growth of Gross Value Addition (GVA) in manufacturing sector. The total employment in this sector has increased from 57 million in the year 2017-18 to 62.4 million in the year 2019-20.

The activities under the Make in India initiative are also being undertaken by several Central Government Ministries/ Departments and various State and UTs Governments. Ministries formulate action plans, programmes, schemes and policies for the sectors being dealt by them, while States also have their own Schemes for attracting investments.

7-Dec-2022: Most sectors except certain strategically important sectors open for 100% FDI under the automatic route

To promote FDI in the country, the Government has put in place an investor-friendly policy, wherein most sectors except certain strategically important sectors are open for 100% FDI under the automatic route, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry, Shri Som Parkash said in reply to a parliament question today.

It may be noted that the policy on FDI is reviewed on an ongoing basis, to ensure that India remains attractive and investor friendly destination. Changes are made in the policy after detailed consultations with stakeholders including apex industry chambers, associations, sectoral ministries/ departments and representatives of industries/groups and other organizations. Government has recently undertaken a number of reforms across sectors like Defence, Petroleum and Natural Gas, Insurance etc.

The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) is the Nodal Department for coordinating the initiatives under Ease of Doing Business which are aimed at creating an investor-friendly ecosystems across the country. In addition to ongoing schemes of various Departments and Ministries, Government has also undertaken various steps to boost domestic and foreign investments in India. These include the introduction of Goods and Services Tax, reduction in Corporate taxes, financial market reforms, consolidation of public sector banks, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy reforms, reduction in compliance burden, various policy measures to boost domestic manufacturing, to name a few.

DPIIT, in coordination with States and Union Territories (UTs), is spearheading various reforms to improve the business regulatory environment in the country. DPIIT undertakes a dynamic reform exercise called Business Reforms Action Plan (BRAP), wherein all States and UTs are assessed on the basis of implementation of designated reform parameters. The focus of the reforms has been on streamlining the existing regulations and processes and eliminating unnecessary requirements and procedures. The Action Plan for the year 2022 covers 352 reform points.

All the States and UTs, including Jharkhand, Delhi and West Bengal have also participated actively in this exercise over the years and reforms implemented by them are recorded on the BRAP Portal (https://eodb.dpiit.gov.in/). The exercise boosts competitive federalism among the States/UTs and thereby helps to further facilitate investor-friendly ecosystems across the country.

Comprehensive reforms have been undertaken by the Public Sector Banks (PSBs) under Enhanced Access and Service Excellence reforms agenda to improve the ease of doing business including, inter alia, the following –

  1. Setting up of Loan Management Systems and Centralised Processing Centres, resulting in retail loan disbursement turnaround time reducing from 31 days to 10 days;
  2. Enhancement of access to mobile and Internet banking by PSBs through increase in average number of services offered, customer-friendly features, and regional languages available on the customer interface;
  3. Introduction of end-to-end automated digital lending in most of the larger PSBs for unsecured personal loans, loans to micro-enterprises and renewal of loans to MSMEs;
  4. Enablement of digital retail loan request initiation through digital channels in all large PSBs; and
  5. Thrust on customer-need-driven, analytics-based credit offers by large PSBs.

The objective of amalgamation of the banks was to facilitate consolidation among PSBs to create strong and competitive banks capable of achieving economies of scale and realization of synergy benefits with wider product and service offering to customers. As a result of this effort, customers of amalgamated banks received access to increased number of branches and ATMs from which they can now avail banking services.

Customers have also received access to a larger bouquet of products and services through harmonization of the same across banks being amalgamated together and enhanced their lending capacity for loans of a larger size. Further, the increased scale and customer base in the amalgamated banks has also enabled banks to opening/reorganizing controlling offices and processing centers, equipping them for better customer serving.

28-Jul-2022: Singapore (27.01%), USA (17.94%), Mauritius (15.98%), Netherland (7.86%) and Switzerland (7.31%) emerge as top 5 countries for FDI equity inflows into India FY 2021-22

Singapore (27.01%) and USA (17.94%) have emerged as top 2 sourcing nations in FDI equity flows into India in FY2021-22 followed by   Mauritius (15.98%), Netherland (7.86%) and Switzerland (7.31%). It may be noted that as per the UNCTAD World Investment Report (WIR) 2022, in its analysis of the global trends in FDI inflows, India has improved one position to 7th rank among the top 20 host economies for 2021.

India is rapidly emerging as a preferred country for foreign investments in the manufacturing sector. FDI Equity inflow in Manufacturing Sectors have increased by 76% in FY 2021-22 (USD 21.34 billion) compared to previous FY 2020-21 (USD 12.09 billion).

The Government has implemented several transformative reforms under the FDI policy regime across sectors such as insurance, defence, telecom, financial services, pharmaceuticals, retail trading, e-commerce, construction & development, civil aviation, manufacturing etc.

Despite the ongoing pandemic and global developments, India received the highest annual FDI inflows of USD 84,835 million in FY 21-22 overtaking last year’s FDI by USD 2.87 billion. Earlier, FDI inflows increased from USD 74,391 million in FY 19-20 to USD 81,973 million in FY 20-21.

The Government continues to liberalize investment restrictions, eliminate regulatory barriers, nurture international relations and improve business environment. Changes are made in the FDI policy after having consultations with stakeholders including apex industry chambers, associations, representatives of industries/groups and other organizations. While foreign investments are permitted under the automatic route in most sectors/activities, due to strategic reasons certain investments are either restricted or permitted under the Government approval route through a screening mechanism as per the prescribed framework.

Top 5 sectors receiving highest FDI Equity Inflow during FY 2021-22 are Computer Software & Hardware (24.60%), Services Sector (Fin., Banking, Insurance, Non Fin/Business, Outsourcing, R&D, Courier, Tech. Testing and Analysis, Other) (12.13%), Automobile Industry (11.89%), Trading 7.72% and Construction (Infrastructure) Activities (5.52%).

Top 5 States receiving highest FDI Equity Inflow during FY 2021-22 are Karnataka (37.55%), Maharashtra (26.26%), Delhi (13.93%), Tamil Nadu (5.10%) and Haryana (4.76%)

Top 5 sectors receiving highest FDI Equity Inflow during FY 2021-22 are Computer Software & Hardware (24.60%), Services Sector (Fin., Banking, Insurance, Non Fin/Business, Outsourcing, R&D, Courier, Tech. Testing and Analysis, Other) (12.13%), Automobile Industry (11.89%), Trading 7.72% and Construction (Infrastructure) Activities (5.52%).

During FY 2021-22 FDI has been reported from 101 countries, whereas, it was reported from 97 countries during previous FY 2020-21.

In India FDI up to 100% is allowed in non-critical sectors through the automatic route, not requiring security clearance from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). Prior government approval or security clearance from MHA is required for investments in sensitive sectors such as defence, media, telecommunication, satellites, private security agencies, civil aviation and mining, besides any investment from Pakistan and Bangladesh. All foreign investments are required to be in compliance with the applicable entry route, sectoral cap, attendant conditions, sectoral laws, Companies Act, 2013 and rules thereunder, pricing guidelines, documentation and reporting requirements.

The FDI policy regime continues to welcome all investments in the country subject to compliance of applicable entry conditions and rules/regulations.

25-Jul-2022: FDI in Defence Sector

The Government vide Press Note No. 4(2020 Series) dated 17.09.2020, has liberalised and allowed FDI under automatic route up to 74% and up to 100% through Government route wherever it is likely to result in access to modern technology. Since the notification of revised FDI policy, the total FDI inflow reported till May, 2022 is approximately Rs. 494 Crores. The Department of Defence Production (DDP) has brought in number of Policy reforms for attracting investment:

  • Higher multipliers assigned in Offset Policy to attract investment and Transfer of Technology for Defence manufacturing.
  • Specific consultations are done regularly with Foreign Original Equipment Manufacturers (FOEMs).
  • Two Defence Corridors have been established; one in Tamil Nadu and another in Uttar Pradesh which provide Plug & Play support to the industries including FOEMs in the Corridor. Under the Aerospace & Defence Policy notified by the two State Governments, Customized incentive packages are provided to investors based on investment, employment and project location which may include GST based refunds on sales, Stamp duty concessions on land allotment, Electricity Tax exemption, Capital subsidy and Training subsidy for training workers.
  • Webinars are conducted with Friendly Foreign Countries (FFCs) under the aegis of DDP, Ministry of Defence (MoD) through Indian Missions abroad and Industry Associations with active participation from Indian Defence Industries. Webinars have been conducted with 27 FFCs till date.
  • Defence Investor Cell has been created to provide all necessary information including addressing queries related to investment opportunities, procedures and regulatory requirements for investment in the sector. 1,445 queries have been addressed by the Cell till date.

19-Jul-2022: India attracts USD 343.64 million FDI equity inflow in R&D sector during 2021, which is 516% higher as compared to 2020

India attracted USD 343.64 million FDI equity inflow in R&D sector during C.Y. 2021 (Calendar Year) which is 516% higher as compared to previous C.Y. 2020 (USD 55.77 million). FDI is permitted under 100% automatic route in R&D sector subject to applicable laws/regulations, security and other conditionalities.

Karnataka is the top FDI Equity recipient state in R&D during C.Y. 2021 followed by Telangana and Haryana. The following states showed growth of more than 250% during C.Y. 2021 compared to previous C.Y. 2020: Telangana, Karnataka, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh & Tamil Nādu.

Singapore is the top investing country in R&D during C.Y. 2021 with 40% share of total FDI Equity in R&D followed by Germany (35%) and U.S.A (11%). Further, FDI Equity inflow from several countries like Germany, Mauritius, France, Singapore, Oman and U.S.A. showed an increase of more than 200% as compared to previous C.Y. 2020.

Daimler Truck Innovation Center was the top FDI Equity inflow recipient company in R&D during C.Y. 2021 with 35% share of total FDI Equity in R&D followed by Aragen Life Sciences Private Limited (34%) and Stelis Biopharma Private Limited (21%).

These trends indicate a robust and growing R&D sector which would benefit the economy by driving innovation, increasing productivity, thereby leading to higher economic growth.

Research and Development (R&D) plays an important role in the development of a knowledge-based economy that can pave the way for higher economic growth. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) infuses long term sustainable capital in the economy and contributes towards technology transfer, development of strategic sectors, greater innovation, competition and employment creation amongst other benefits. It has been a continuous endeavor of the Government to attract and promote R&D intensive FDI in order to supplement domestic capital, technology and skills for accelerated economic growth and development.

20-May-2022: India gets the highest annual FDI inflow of USD 83.57 billion in FY21-22

India has recorded highest ever annual FDI inflow of USD 83.57 billion in the Financial Year 2021-22. In 2014-2015, FDI inflow in India stood at mere 45.15 USD billion as compared to the highest ever annual FDI inflow of USD 83.57 billion reported during the financial year 2021-22 overtaking last year’s FDI by USD 1.60 billion despite military operation in Ukraine and COVID-19 pandemic. India’s FDI inflows have increased 20-fold since FY03-04, when the inflows were USD 4.3 billion only.

The details of total FDI inflows reported during the last four financial years are as under: 

S. No.

Financial Year

Amount of FDI inflows

(in USD billion)

1.

2018-19

62.00

2.

2019-20

74.39

3.

2020-21

81.97

4.

2021-22

83.57

Further, India is rapidly emerging as a preferred country for foreign investments in the manufacturing sector. FDI Equity inflow in Manufacturing Sectors have increased by 76% in FY 2021-22 (USD 21.34 billion) compared to previous FY 2020-21 (USD 12.09 billion).

The following trends in India’s Foreign Direct Investment inflow are an endorsement of its status as a preferred investment destination amongst global investors.

It may be noted that FDI inflow has increased by 23% post-Covid (March, 2020 to March 2022: USD 171.84 billion) in comparison to FDI inflow reported pre-Covid (February, 2018 to February, 2020: USD 141.10 billion) in India.

In terms of top investor countries of FDI Equity inflow, ‘Singapore’ is at the apex with 27%, followed by U.S.A (18%) and Mauritius (16%) for the FY 2021-22.‘Computer Software & Hardware’ has emerged as the top recipient sector of FDI Equity inflow during FY 2021-22 with around 25% share followed by Services Sector (12%) and Automobile Industry (12%) respectively.

Under the sector `Computer Software & Hardware’, the major recipient states of FDI Equity inflow are Karnataka (53%), Delhi (17%) and Maharashtra (17%) during FY 2021-22. Karnataka is the top recipient state with 38% share of the total FDI Equity inflow reported during the FY 2021-22 followed by Maharashtra (26%) and Delhi (14%). Majority of the equity inflow of Karnataka has been reported in the sectors `Computer Software & Hardware’ (35%), Automobile Industry (20%) and `Education’ (12%) during the FY 2021-22.

The steps taken by the Government during the last eight years have borne fruit as is evident from the ever-increasing volumes of FDI inflow being received into the country, setting new records. The Government reviews the FDI policy on an ongoing basis and makes significant changes from time to time, to ensure that India remains attractive and investor friendly destination. Government has put in place a liberal and transparent policy for FDI, wherein most of the sectors are open to FDI under the automatic route. To further liberalise and simplify FDI policy for providing Ease of doing business and attract investments, reforms have been undertaken recently across sectors such as Coal Mining, Contract Manufacturing, Digital Media, Single Brand Retail Trading, Civil Aviation, Defence, Insurance and Telecom.

9-Feb-2022: FDI

Foreign Direct Investment inflows (FDI) has shown a continuous increase from US$ 45.15 billion in 2014-15 to US$ 81.97 billion in 2020-21. During the last five financial years, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows worth US$ 339.55 billion have been reported into India. The financial year wise details are as under:

 S. No.

Financial Year

Amount of FDI inflows

(in US$ billions)

1.

2016-17

60.22

2.

2017-18

60.97

3.

2018-19

62.00

4.

2019-20

74.39

5.

2020-21

81.97

To promote Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), the Government has put in place an investor-friendly policy, wherein most sectors are open for 100% FDI under the Automatic route. Further, the policy on FDI is reviewed on an ongoing basis, to ensure that India remains attractive & investor friendly destination. Changes are made in the policy after having consultations with stakeholders including apex industry chambers, Associations, representatives of industries/groups and other organizations. Government has recently undertaken a number of reforms across sectors. In the last one year alone, reforms in the FDI policy have been undertaken in sectors such as Insurance, Defence, Petroleum & Natural Gas, Telecom, etc.

Foreign Direct Investment inflows serve to augment domestic investments, promote industrial development and employment generation across sectors and ancillary industries. Further, such investments bring international best practices and latest technologies which facilitate in skill development, export promotion and improvement of overall competitiveness of economy leading to overall economic growth and development in the country.

2-Feb-2022: FDI Inflow

During the current financial year 2021-22 (up to November, 2021) Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows worth USD 54.10 billion have been reported in the country.

The details of total FDI inflows reported during the last three financial years are as under: 

S. No.

Financial Year

Amount of FDI inflows

(in USD billion)

1.

2018-19

62.00

2.

2019-20

74.39

3.

2020-21

81.97

Source: Reserve Bank of India.

The Government reviews the FDI policy on an ongoing basis and makes significant changes from time to time, to ensure that India remains attractive and investor friendly destination. Government has put in place a liberal and transparent policy for FDI, wherein most of the sectors are open to FDI under the automatic route. To further liberalise and simplify FDI policy for providing Ease of doing business and attract investments, reforms have been undertaken recently across sectors such as Coal Mining, Contract Manufacturing, Digital Media, Single Brand Retail Trading, Civil Aviation, Defence, Insurance and Telecom.

15-Dec-2021: Foreign Direct Investment
During the last seven financial years, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows worth US$ 440.26 billion have been reported in India. FDI inflow in India stood at US$ 45.15 billion in 2014-2015 and has increased since then. The financial year wise details are as under:
 

S. No.

Financial Year

Amount of FDI inflows

(in US$ billions)

1.

2014-15

45.15

2.

2015-16

55.56

3.

2016-17

60.22

4.

2017-18

60.97

5.

2018-19

62.00

6.

2019-20

74.39

7.

2020-21

81.97

 
To promote Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), the Government has put in place an investor-friendly policy, wherein except for a few sectors, most sectors are open for 100% FDI under the Automatic route. Further, the policy on FDI is reviewed on an ongoing basis, to ensure that India remains attractive & investor friendly destination. Changes are made in the policy after having consultations with stakeholders including apex industry chambers, Associations, representatives of industries/groups and other organizations. Government has recently undertaken a number of reforms across sectors. In the last one year alone, reforms in the FDI policy have been undertaken in sectors such as Insurance, Defence, Petroleum & Natural Gas, Telecom, etc.
 
Foreign Direct Investment inflows serve to augment domestic investments, promotes industrial development and employment generation across sectors and ancillary industries. Further, such investments bring international best practices and latest technologies which facilitate in skill development, export promotion and improvement of overall competitiveness of economy leading to overall economic growth and development in the country.

 8-Dec-2021: FDI

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is one of the important drivers of economic growth and a source of non-debt finance for the economic development of India. FDI complements and supplements domestic investment. Domestic companies are benefited through FDI by way of enhanced access to supplementary capital and state-of-art-technologies, as also exposure to global managerial practices resulting into employment generation and accelerated growth of the sectors.

The details of foreign investment reported through routes of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflow and Foreign Portfolio Investment (FPI) inflows (net) during the last five financial years are as under:

(Amount in USD Million)

S. No.

Financial Year

Total FDI Inflow

FPI inflows (net)

1.

2016-17

60,220

7,735

2.

2017-18

60,974

22,165

3.

2018-19

62,001

(-) 2,225

4.

2019-20

74,390

552

5.

2020-21

81,973

38,725

To promote FDI, the Government has put in place an investor-friendly policy, wherein except for a small negative list, most sectors are open for 100% FDI under the Automatic route. Further, the policy on FDI is reviewed on an ongoing basis, to ensure that India remains attractive & investor friendly destination. Changes are made in the policy after having intensive consultations with stakeholders including apex industry chambers, Associations, representatives of industries/groups and other organizations taking into consideration their views/comments.

Government has also taken various steps to improve the overall business regulatory environment in the country and create a conducive business environment by streamlining the existing regulations and processes and eliminating unnecessary requirements and procedures.

Recently, Government has taken various steps in addition to ongoing schemes to boost domestic investments in India. These include the National Infrastructure Pipeline, Reduction in Corporate Tax, easing liquidity problems of NBFCs and Banks, trade policy measures to boost domestic manufacturing. Government of India has also promoted domestic manufacturing of goods through the public procurement order, Phased Manufacturing Programme (PMP), Schemes for Production Linked Incentives of various Ministries.

1-Dec-2021: Foreign Investment

The details of foreign investment reported through routes of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflow and Foreign Portfolio Investment (FPI) inflows (net) during the last five financial years are as under:

 S. No.

Financial Year

Total FDI Inflow

(amount in US$ million)

FPI inflows (net)

(amount in US$ million)

1.

2016-17

60,220

7,735

2.

2017-18

60,974

22,165

3.

2018-19

62,001

(-) 2,225

4.

2019-20

74,390

552

5.

2020-21

81,973

38,725

Source: Reserve Bank of India.

As shown in table above, despite COVID-19 pandemic, the country has shown growth both in FDI inflow and FPI inflows (net) during Financial Year 2020-21 as compared to previous Financial Year 2019-20.

4-Aug-2021: India registered its highest ever annual FDI Inflow of US $81.72 billion during the last financial year 2020-21

Make in India is an initiative which was launched on 25thSeptember, 2014 to facilitate investment, foster innovation, build best in class infrastructure, and make India a hub for manufacturing, design, and innovation. Development of a robust manufacturing sector continues to be a key priority of the Indian Government. It was one of the first 'Vocal for Local' initiatives that exposed India's manufacturing domain to the world. The sector has the potential to not only take economic growth to a higher trajectory but also to provide employment to a large pool of our young labour force.

Make in India initiative has made significant achievements and presently focuses on 27 sectors under Make in India 2.0. Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade is coordinating action plans for manufacturing sector, while Department of Commerce is coordinating service sector.

Activities under Make in India initiative are being undertaken by several Central and State Government departments from time to time. Programme specific data of such activities and details of foreign companies are not centrally maintained.

India has registered its highest ever annual FDI Inflow of US $81.72 billion (provisional figure) during the last financial year 2020-21 as compared to US $ 45.15 billion in 2014-2015. In the last seven financial years (2014-20), India has received FDI inflow worth US$ 440.01 billion which is 58 percent of the FDI reported in the last 21 years (US$ 763.58 billion).

23-Jun-2021: India attracted US$ 6.24 billion total FDI inflow during April, 2021

Measures taken by the Government on the fronts of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy reforms, investment facilitation and ease of doing business have resulted in increased FDI inflows into the country. The following trends in India’s Foreign Direct Investment are an endorsement of its status as a preferred investment destination amongst global investors:

  • India has attracted total FDI inflow of US$ 6.24 billion during April, 2021 and it is 38% higher as compared to April, 2020 (US$4.53 billion).
  • During April, 2021FDI Equity inflows amounting to US$ 4.44 billion were reported in the country which is an increase of 60% over the FDI Equity inflow of April, 2020 (US$ 2.77 billion).
  • During April, 2021,Mauritius is the top investing country with 24% of the FDI Equity inflows, followed by Singapore (21%) and Japan (11%).
  • ‘Computer Software & Hardware’ has emerged as the top sector during April, 2021 with around 24%share of the total FDI Equity inflow followed by Services Sector (23%) and Education Sector (8%) respectively.
  • Karnataka is the top recipient state during April, 2021 with 31% share of the total FDI Equity inflows, followed by Maharashtra (19%) and Delhi (15%).

12-Feb-2021: FDI inflows in food processing sector increase from USD 628.24 Million in 2018-19 to USD 904.7 Million in 2019-20

The Government has put in place a liberal and transparent policy for attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), wherein most of the sectors are open to FDI under the automatic route. The intent is to make the FDI policy more investor friendly and remove the policy bottlenecks that have been hindering the investment inflows into the country. 100% FDI is permitted under the automatic route in the food-processing sector.

The reforms and policy measures initiated by the Government had a positive impact on FDI inflows into the country. As per the World Investment Report 2020 of United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), India’s position among top economies attracting FDI inflows has improved to 9th position in 2019 from 12th in 2018. India registered its highest ever FDI inflows of USD 74.39 billion (provisional) during 2019-20. Even during the Covid pandemic between April and November, 2020, total FDI inflows of USD 58.37 billion has been received. The FDI inflows in the food processing sector also increased from USD 628.24 Million in 2018-19 to USD 904.7 Million in 2019-20.

Ministry of Food Processing Industries has also set up a dedicated Investment Facilitation Cell with Invest India to facilitate all investment interests received in the food processing sector. The Cell handholds investors throughout the investment phases in a structured manner by providing relevant sectoral & sub-sectoral information, assisting with regulatory requirements, location assessment, applicable policies and schemes etc.

27-Jan-2021: Total FDI inflow of US$ 58.37 billion received during April to November, 2020

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is a major driver of economic growth and an important source of non-debt finance for the economic development of India. It has been the endeavor of the Government to put in place an enabling and investor friendly FDI policy. The intent all this while has been to make the FDI policy more investor friendly and remove the policy bottlenecks that have been hindering the investment inflows into the country. The steps taken in this direction have borne fruit, as is evident from the ever-increasing volumes of FDI inflows being received into the country.

Measures taken by the Government on the fronts of FDI policy reforms, investment facilitation and ease of doing business have resulted in increased FDI inflows into the country. The following trends in India’s Foreign Direct Investment are an endorsement of its status as a preferred investment destination amongst global investors:

  • During April to November, 2020, total FDI inflow of US$ 58.37 billion has been received. It is the highest ever for first 8 months of a financial year and 22% higher as compared to first 8 months of 2019-20 (US$ 47.67 billion).
  • FDI equity inflow received during F.Y. 2020-21 (April to November, 2020) is US$ 43.85 billion. It is also the highest ever for first 8 months of a financial year and 37% more compared to first 8 months of 2019-20 (US$ 32.11 billion).

28-Nov-2020: US$28.1 billion FDI inflows into the country during the July-September quarter

Total Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) inflows into India during the second quarter of financial year 2020-21 (July, 2020 to September, 2020) have been US$ 28,102 million, out of which FDI equity inflows were US$ 23,441 million or Rs. 174,793 crore. This takes the FDI equity inflows during the financial year 2020-21upto September 2020 to US$30,004 million which is 15% more than the corresponding period of 2019-20. In rupee terms, the FDI Equity inflows of Rs 224,613 Crore are 23% more than the last year. August, 2020 has been the significant month when US$ 17,487 Million FDI equity inflows were reported in the country.

In terms of the Countries from where FDI Equity Inflows were reported to India, during April, 2000 to September, 2020; maximum FDI Equity inflows have been reported from Mauritius, followed by Singapore and the USA.

Among the sectors, Services sector has received maximum FDI equity inflows, during April, 2000 to September, 2020; followed by Computer Software & Hardware, and Telecommunications.

Gujarat has been the major beneficiary state of the FDI Equity inflows, during October, 2019 to September, 2020;followed by Maharashtra and Karnataka.

2-Aug-2017: India, ASEAN-5 to fetch more FDI than other emerging markets

As per a report, India along with Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam has emerged as attractive destinations to FDIs as compared to other emerging markets and flows to these nations are expected to surge to around USD 240 billion by 2025.

For the same reason, India and ASEAN-5 (Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam) have been dubbed as “Asia’s tiger cubs“. Moreover, sources of FDI to these nations are also witnessing a significant shift with more inflows expected from countries as China and Japan.

Rising labour costs in China and an ageing population in Northeast Asia have disincentivized foreign direct investment (FDI) and they are in search of new destinations. India and the ASEAN-5 are well placed to emerge as that destination.

Other factors that are expected to encourage FDI into India and ASEAN-5 include – large and growing domestic markets; reforms focussed on improving infrastructure and the ease of doing business; a more open and liberal FDI regime; sound economic management and political stability; and availability of low-cost labour.