Federal Councillor Schneider-Ammann on economic mission to India
Bern, 04.04.2011 - Federal Councillor Johann N. Schneider-Ammann will travel to India for working discussions from 6 to 10 April 2011 accompanied by a business delegation. For the Federal Council, the mission is an acknowledgement of the longstanding and friendly relations with India and the increasing economic ties between Switzerland and India.
Federal Councillor Johann N. Schneider-Ammann will hold official discussions in India with Trade and Industry Minister Anand Sharma, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Labour Minister Mallikarjun Kharge. The meetings are intended to deepen and strengthen bilateral economic relations with India as part of the Federal Council's foreign economic strategy. One topic of discussion in Delhi will be the on-going negotiations regarding a wide-ranging trade and investment agreement between EFTA and India.
In Pune Federal Councillor Schneider-Ammann will see first hand a vocational education and training cooperation project between Switzerland and India. Switzerland assisted in the initial stages of the pilot project, which is largely financed by the private sector. Also on the programme is a conference of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry FICCI in Delhi on the economic partnership between Switzerland and India, visits to Swiss and Indian firms in Pune and Mumbai, as well as a tour of the planned town of Lavasa, which is seen as a model for Indian urban development in the 21st century.
India's economy is expected to develop very positively. According to the Federal Customs Administration, in 2010 Switzerland recorded a trade surplus with India of CHF 1.55 billion; exports of goods to India amounted to CHF 2.56 billion, with imports amounting to CHF 1.01 billion. As of the end of 2009 the volume of Swiss direct investment in India registered by the Swiss National Bank amounted to CHF 3.32 billion, which led to the creation of at least 60,000 jobs in India. Trade in services also developed very dynamically: Indian IT companies, for example, increasingly provide their services in Switzerland, and in 2010 overnight stays by Indian tourists in Switzerland increased by 21% compared to the previous year.
Address for enquiries
Christian Hofer, Dep. Head, Asia/Oceania Desk at SECO, Tel. +41 31 322 22 43
Evelyn Kobelt, Press Spokesperson FDEA, Tel. +41 31 322 20 59, +41 79 301 71 72
Publisher
Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research
http://www.wbf.admin.ch
