NEW DELHI: Foreign direct investment (FDI) into the country grew by 37 per cent to USD 10.4 billion during the first quarter of the current fiscal, DIPP said today.
According to the figures of the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), India had received USD 7.59 billion FDI during April-June 2016-17. The main sectors which attracted the highest foreign inflows include services, telecom, trading, computer hardware and software and automobile.
Bulk of the FDI came in from Singapore, Mauritius, the Netherlands and Japan. The government has announced several steps to attract foreign inflows. The measures include liberalisation of FDI policy and improvement in business climate.
Foreign investments are considered crucial for India, which needs around USD 1 trillion for overhauling its infrastructure sector such as ports, airports and highways to boost growth. A strong inflow of foreign investments will help improve the country’s balance of payments situation and strengthen the rupee value against other global currencies, especially the US dollar.
The DIPP through its 'Make in India' twitter handle also stated that FDI equity inflow in manufacturing sector grew by 31 per cent to USD 4.19 billion during April-June this fiscal. FDI equity inflow in glass, Leather cement & gypsum products, sea transport, air transport, construction development, mining, sugar and medical & surgical appliances recorded five fold jump during the quarter. It added that since the launch of 'Make in India' initiative (October 2014 - June this year), foreign inflows jumped 64 per cent to USD 110.12 billion from USD 67.26 billion in the same period last year.