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A Boom in Israel's Exports to India

[Business Week] Neal Sandler - As India's economy grows, exports from Israel to the world's second-most-populous country are soaring. Netafim, a leading supplier of drip irrigation systems, has expanded its staff in India from fewer than 100 employees just four years ago to more than 700 and on Aug. 23 opened a second factory in Chennai. Makers of everything from chemicals to software are seeing similar surges. Exports of nonmilitary goods and services from Israel to India jumped 40% in the first half of 2008 from the same period the year before, after reaching a record $1.6 billion for 2007 as a whole. Military business also is booming. A senior Israeli defense industry source estimates that Indian purchases now account for about one-third, or $1.67 billion, of Israel's $5 billion in annual defense exports, with India supplanting the U.S. as Israel's largest customer for weapons systems. In the past two years Israeli real estate developers have committed billions of dollars to projects in India, constructing everything from housing to hotels and shopping malls. "We were debating between India and China and decided to go with the former because conditions there for foreigners to operate were a lot easier," says Segi Eitan, CEO of Property and Building. Products from Israel accounted for less than 2 percent of India's $230 billion in total imports last year, but in key fields such as defense, agriculture, water, and high tech, Israel has what India is looking for.
2008-08-29 01:00:00
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