U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, on October 9, 2012, has welcomed the steps taken by India to encourage foreign investment, saying that it will provide a strong foundation for economic growth. In a joint press conference with Indian Finance Minister P. Chidambaram, Geithner spoke of how the reforms will help India to attract investors, which will lead to widespread gains in income.
It was the appointment of P. Chidambaram that helped foster reforms with the support of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Changes to boost the country’s slowing economy included cutting diesel fuel subsidies as well as encouraging foreign participation in retail.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) had predicted that GDP growth for the country would reach 4.9 percent in 2012, one of the lowest figures in terms of official forecasts. The previous financial year had seen a record high foreign direct investment for India, a figure that had fallen 67 percent since the start of the 2012-2013 financial year.
Mr. Geithner said that it was an important time in the global economy and that it was a period of significant changes in economic reform in both the United States and India. He went on to say that the United States have made progress in damage repair brought on by their financial crisis and that they still had many challenges ahead.
