Resurgent India Buys More Rivals Than West

Ambitious Indian companies are flexing their muscles in the global economy: new research by accountant KPMG shows India is poised to become a net 'deal exporter', with more of its firms snapping up rivals overseas than surrendering to foreign buyers.

High-profile buyouts such as Indian conglomerate Tata's acquisition of Jaguar Land Rover, and Mittal Steel's mega-merger with Corus, are just the tip of the iceberg, according to KPMG, which has tracked deals between emerging market businesses and developed economies since 2003.

During that period, Indian firms have made 322 deals in countries such as the US and Europe, while 340 Indian firms have been swallowed by inward investors. Ian Gomes, chairman of KPMG's new and emerging markets practice in the UK, predicts that outward deals from India will soon overtake the number of inward investments.

Back-office IT expertise is probably India's best-known export, but takeover targets have been in diverse sectors, from Whyte and Mackay whisky, bought by India's United Breweries last year, to London's oldest stockbroker - Hichens, Harrison and co - bought earlier this year by Delhi firm Religare Enterprises.

Many of the deals clocked by KPMG are relatively small: Gomes said the average value may be just $50m, once the huge players such as Tata and drug giant Ranbaxy are excluded.

India's economy has expanded rapidly over the past decade, and is still expected to achieve growth of up to 8 per cent this year, in the face of the global slowdown.

'We're witnessing something that can only be described as an industrial revolution in India. It's moving at such a pace that it's very exciting,' says Vikas Pota, director of Saffron Chase, a communications firm aimed at British-Indian businesses.

He added that despite the growing market at home, Indian businesses look overseas for expertise, as well as markets. 'They feel that to capitalize on the Indian opportunity, they need to be global players themselves. Skills are a big issue.'