India attracts USD 2.34 bn FDI in first month of 2009-10

Ankur Garg (Company Secretary and Compliance Officer) (114773 Points)

24 June 2009

Wednesday 24 June, 2009.

India attracts USD 2.34 bn FDI in first month of 2009-10

India attracted USD 2.34 billion of foreign investments in April, a rise of 19.3 percent over the previous month, signalling confidence in the country's economy by foreign investors amid the global financial crisis.

However, as compared to April last year, foreign direct investment (FDI) in the first month of the fiscal 2009-10, was much lower.

"In April 2009, foreign inflows were USD 2.34 billion, about 19 per cent higher than March," an official told a news agency.

The inflows in April and March last fiscal were USD 3.74 billion and USD 1.96 billion, respectively.

Thanks to robust trends in the first six months of the last fiscal, total FDI in 2008-09 was USD 27.30 billion, against USD 24.5 billion in 2007-08.

Rating agency CRISIL Principal Economist D K Joshi said the current year would be difficult in the wake of the global economic downturn.

"Given the poor global economic scenario, the figures are not too discouraging but the year 2009-10 will be more challenging," Joshi said.

India had scaled down the FDI target by USD five billion from USD 35 billion last fiscal. Cumulative FDI from April 2000 to March 2009 stands close to about USD 90 billion.