India gets $511.5 million in FDI under new policy for neighbouring countries

Business Recorder reported that the Indian government said on Friday 29 foreign investment proposals worth 48.95 billion rupees, or $511.5 million, have been received. These came through a fresh automatic channel open to investors from neighbouring states, chiefly China, that may hold stakes of up to 10% without gaining control.

The commerce and industry ministry said the projects cover transport services, data centres, pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, information technology and artificial intelligence. The figures are an early sign of how investors are using the May rules that relaxed approval for minority holdings linked to land-bordering countries. Under the earlier 2020 framework, any ownership linked to such countries generally required prior government approval, even when the stake was small.

The ministry's statement said the reporting investors are based in Singapore, Japan, Mauritius, Luxembourg, the Cayman Islands, South Korea and the United States. For Pakistani readers, the item carries no direct link to PSX-listed companies, since it concerns Indian market access rules only.