ID :
171586
Tue, 03/29/2011 - 13:24
Auther :

FDI down by 30 pc in February to USD 1.2 bn

New Delhi (PTI) - Foreign direct investment
(FDI) in India registered its second consecutive decline in
February, 2011, dipping by 30 per cent year-on-year to USD 1.2
billion in the backdrop of financial turmoil in Europe.
In February, 2010, India attracted foreign direct
investment (FDI) worth USD 1.7 billion.
During the 11-month period from April, 2010, to
February, 2011, FDI inflows into India declined by 25 per cent
to USD 18.3 billion, which makes it imperative for the country
to fine-tune its policies to attract overseas investment.
The country received FDI worth USD 24.6 billion during
the April-February, 2009-10, period.
"The numbers are bad. We will not be able to touch
last year's FDI figure," an official told PTI, adding, "The
government needs to take the matter seriously and initiate
steps to boost investors' confidence."
Feeling the impact of the turbulence that battered the
global economy in 2009-10, India's FDI dropped to USD 25.88
billion during the fiscal from USD 27.33 billion in the
previous financial year.
"This year is not good for FDI. The global economic
recovery is very fragile in European economies. India needs
some policy actions to boost the FDI," CRISIL Principal
Economist D K Joshi said.
On its part, the Department of Industrial Policy and
Promotion (DIPP) has initiated steps to streamline the FDI
procedures, including consolidation of all rules and
regulations into a single document.
In January, FDI plunged by 48 per cent vis-a-vis the
corresponding month of the previous year to USD 1.04 billion.
The sectors that attracted FDI include services
(financial and non-financial), telecommunications, housing and
real estate, construction activities and power.
Countries including Mauritius, Singapore, the US, UK,
Netherlands, Japan, Germany and UAE are the major investors in
India.
As far as FII inflows are concerned, in February,
foreign institutional investors pulled out USD 721.33 million,
whereas they invested USD 946.21 million in the same period
last year.

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