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This week President Obama embarks on a four-nation trip to Asia this week, with a key stop for three days in India aimed at promoting expansion of U.S. exports to the country and increasing Indian corporations investments in America.
Undersecretary of state and political affairs Bill Burns reinforced the importance of ties with India noting that "India's rise and its strength and progress on the global stage is deeply in the strategic interest of the United States."
Obama touted the relationship with India as one of the "defining partnerships of the 21st century" and stated an economic increase between the U.S. and India a major player in the export initiative introduced in March of this year.
The president's itinerary will include an address to the India's Parliament, a wreath-laying at the grave of revered Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi, and a state dinner, officials said.
By starting in India, the president is signaling the importance of relations with a key economic ally, said Bill Burns, the undersecretary of state for political affairs.
Obvious challenges face business hoping to export to India, one of the biggest being how to effectively market to the 22 languages represented on the Official Languages Commission.
While Hindi and English are listed as official State Department languages, regional areas are allowed to use their native tongues to conduct business in legislative sessions.
Urdu, Telugu, Gujarati, Bengali, and Nepali are a handful of the native languages that are common in India. For companies trying to reach the biggest possible market, translation services for each of these populations could get expensive and be extremely time-consuming.
But according to a 2006 report published by the Common Sense Advisory, 72.4% of consumers say they would be more likely to buy a product with information in their own languagethus making professional translation services for product information, manuals, and customs documents something businesses may want to take a look at.
With a sluggish domestic economy and growing potential in Indian markets, U.S. exporters and the Federal Government are eyeing the world's largest democratic society with anticipation.
Deputy national security adviser for international economic affairs Michael Froman, agrees.
"With 1.2 billion people and an economy expected to grow at 8 percent a year for the next several years, we really see India as a potentially very important market for U.S. exports," Michael Froman.
