Snow to urge larger foreign role in India<\/p>\n
Glenn Somerville, Reuters\/Mumbai<\/p>\n
U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow will be aiming to nudge India
\nahead on reforms, including greater scope for foreign ownership
\nin financial services, as he begins a four-day visit on Monday.<\/p>\n
Snow's trip, which takes him from Mumbai, the financial center
\nof Asia's third-largest economy, to the capital New Delhi,
\nextends a series of visits to countries the U.S. Treasury sees as
\nhaving a vital role in shaping the global economy in the future.<\/p>\n
India, with its thriving service sector that is already
\ndrawing U.S. jobs away through outsourcing that takes advantage
\nof its educated, cheaper labor force, is seen as a regional
\nleader with considerable influence in advancing the drive towards
\nfree trade.<\/p>\n
"India is a stop along the way toward visiting all those
\ncountries -- including China and Brazil which we visited earlier
\n-- that we regard as having the potential to become the major
\neconomies of the 21st century," Treasury Under Secretary for
\nInternational Affairs Tim Adams said ahead of the visit.<\/p>\n
Adams said in September, before finance ministers from the
\nGroup of Seven industrial nations met in Washington, that some of
\nthe key emerging powers like Brazil, Russia, India, China and
\nSouth Africa should be "on a glide path" to full G7 membership in
\nrecognition of their rising economic might.<\/p>\n
The five, known informally as the BRICS based upon their
\ninitials, met the finance ministers from the United States,
\nBritain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan for lunch at
\nthe Washington meetings but had no formal role.<\/p>\n
India's US$700-billion economy has been growing at a rate of
\nmore than 6 percent on average over the past five years.<\/p>\n
But the government estimates that about 260 million people --
\nmore than a quarter of the population -- lives in poverty,
\nwithout safe drinking water, proper sanitation facilities or two
\nsquare meals a day.<\/p>\n
One of its pressing needs, which U.S. officials argue can be
\ncountered through more private-sector investment, is for huge
\nspending on infrastructure to improve its roads, ports, airports
\nand electricity-generating capacity.<\/p>\n
Last week, the Indian government approved setting up a state-
\nrun firm to fund such projects, something short of the private-
\nenterprise solutions the Bush administration would favor.<\/p>\n
Snow is to meet representatives of U.S. financial firms doing
\nbusiness in India as well as Indian businessmen, and in New Delhi
\nhe is expected to meet Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram
\nand Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.<\/p>\n
A measure of the growing importance the Bush administration
\nplaces on its strategic relationship with India came in July,
\nwhile Singh was visiting Washington, when President George W.
\nBush made an agreement to permit U.S.-India nuclear cooperation.<\/p>\n
That move, which has drawn criticism in the U.S. Congress and
\nelsewhere, followed 25 years during which the United States led a
\nfight to deny India access to nuclear technology because it had
\ndeveloped nuclear weapons and tested them.<\/p>\n
The United States is hoping that India will use its influence
\nwithin Asia and the G20 grouping of developing nations to try to
\nbring scheduled trade talks in Hong Kong between the 148 members
\nof the World Trade Organization to a successful conclusion.<\/p>\n
Differences over farm subsidies -- a specially sensitive issue
\nfor China since 60 percent of its people derive their incomes
\nfrom farming -- are already roiling negotiations.<\/p>",
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