Piyush Goyal Calls Upon Auto Component Industry To Go Global

Addressing the 66th Annual Session of the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association (ACMA) in New Delhi,  Union Minister of Commerce & Industry Shri Piyush Goyal yesterday called upon the auto component industry to transform local businesses into global businesses, expand manufacturing footprints across developed countries, strengthen supply-chain resilience and move up the value chain as India seeks to deepen its integration with global markets.

Shri Goyal said the industry’s international trade was nearly USD 50 billion, evenly divided between imports and exports. He said business prospers when it looks globally and imports can also play an important role in the economic progress of a country, while clarifying that this should not be taken as an encouragement to increase imports.

He said there had been a commitment to widen the gap between imports and exports, but this had not yet started, and called for much greater international investment and international business emerging from ACMA and its membership in the years ahead.

The Minister said the industry had benefited from collaborations over the years and had established the ability to produce quality goods in India at globally competitive price points. He called upon the industry to now expand its manufacturing footprint across the world and establish a presence in developed countries.

Shri Goyal highlighted India’s growing market access through nine trade agreements finalised in the last four to five years under the leadership of Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. He said these agreements covered 38 developed countries, collectively representing a GDP of USD 60 trillion. He said the Free Trade Agreements concluded prior to 2014 collectively accounted for a GDP of USD 10 trillion at today’s value, while the nine agreements concluded under the present Government in the last four and a half years provide two-way market access to economies representing a USD 60 trillion GDP.

He said these agreements covered prosperous countries with high GDPs and high per capita GDPs, offering less competition and greater complementarity with Indian industry. Shri Goyal also acknowledged ACMA’s role in India’s Free Trade Agreement negotiations, saying that the organisation had consistently sought zero-duty access for the Indian auto component sector while also seeking reciprocal opening of the Indian market. He said the industry was capable of taking on the best in the world and was ready to meet global competition.

Referring to the theme of the session, “Beyond Resilience, managing uncertainty to creating new avenues, deeper supply chains”, Shri Goyal said it was particularly relevant in a world marked by uncertainties, challenges and considerable churn.

The Minister said that amid global turmoil, India had continued to stay the course and remained the fastest-growing among the large economies of the world. “The naysayers can say what they want, but 7.8% growth is a reality,” he said.

Highlighting the growth across sectors, Shri Goyal pointed out that ACMA was growing at a scorching double-digit rate and the auto sector was growing at a high double-digit rate. He said five million passenger cars were expected to be sold this year. The Minister said the cars were being bought and were not merely being stocked. He also referred to electric vehicles, noting that some electric vehicles now had a six-month waiting period.