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AFP
Published
Feb 3, 2010
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'Come to India': minister tells European textile firms

By
AFP
Published
Feb 3, 2010

PARIS (AFP) — Indian Textiles Minister Dayanidhi Maran on Tuesday 2 February urged European companies to invest more in his country as he insisted in Paris that India was a more lucrative destination than China.



"Come, come, come and make money," Maran told textile industry executives, adding: "Come to India, produce in India, sell in India, make money in India."

Maran, who visited Switzerland, Italy and Turkey before arriving in France, said India was a safer bet for investors than China.

"We want to ensure that India has good quality products, that copyright is protected, so that investors prefer India to China or other countries," he told AFP.

"We want to ensure that more investment comes to India, not to take your business," he said.

India's textile industry made an estimated 62 billion dollars (45 billion euros) in sales in 2008-2009, with 35 percent of them in exports.

More than 30 percent of exports go to European Union countries and another 20 percent to the United States.

The Indian textiles minister forecast a fourfold increase in exports in the next 25 years, from 22 billion dollars to 90 billion dollars.

Maran's delegation will visit Germany, the last stop of its tour, after its trip in France.

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