Visits strengthen Indian trade links with Yorkshire

WAYS in which to deepen trade links with India has been under the spotlight with a series of events this week.

It culminates in the visit of the Deputy High Commissioner of India, Dr Virander Paul, to Leeds today for discussions around trade and investment.

Organised by Yorkshire Asian Business Association (YABA), supported by Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (LEP), James E. Lynch India and South Asia Business Centre, University of Leeds and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce, the visit is part of a wider programme of activity to strengthen relationships between local and Indian businesses, with the goal of increasing exports and attracting investment to the city region from the Indian market.

Today’s event follows the visit of a delegation of Indian life sciences companies to the city, which brought together Yorkshire and Indian businesses from the sector to create relationships and explore opportunities,

Amarjit Singh, chairman of YABA, said: “As a region, we have a number of opportunities both for our indigenous companies to increase our exports to India and for Indian companies who are looking for entry to the UK to consider Leeds City Region for their location. We hope that the visiting delegates this week will have gained a sense of the broad opportunities which exist in the region.”

Eric Hawthorn, managing director of Radio Design, which employs 40 people in Delhi and generates 10% of its turnover from the Indian market, said: “The opportunities for Leeds City Region firms looking to do business in India are huge, with demand for British goods and services continuing to rise.

“I warmly welcome the Deputy High Commissioner’s visit as an opportunity to discuss how our region can strengthen current and build new relationships with Indian firms, and increase the flow of trade and investment between India and the City Region to support our economic ambitions.”

The speakers will also set out the intention and ambition to nurture key international relationships in the form of a membership group entitled India Business Club, which will develop a programme of activities to capitalise on trade opportunities in the Indian market, as well as raise the profile of Leeds City Region among leading Indian businesses looking to invest in the UK.

LEP chairman Roger Marsh added: “We are a powerhouse region looking to grow our economic competitiveness and this is an unrivalled opportunity to forge links and explore new business opportunities in the fast-growing Indian market.”

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