US braces to raise bilateral trade to $40 billion

NEW DELHI: The calm exterior of the US Embassy is misleading. Within, the Embassy is bracing itself to meet the US government's business objective of increasing Indo-US bilateral trade to $40 billion by 2007-08.
To begin with, as many as 15 new officials have taken posts in India mostly from the US, but also from other parts of world, replacing some old positions and filling out new ones.This is amongst the largest transition of economic officers at a single time in the US Embassy in Delhi.
The other indication that trade — which continues to be the weakest link in Indo-US relationship — is getting priority is the fact that four new positions have been moved from Washington to India, including specialists in Civil Aviation, Defence Cooperation, Intellectual Property and Treasury.
A trade analyst points out that bilateral trade was $20 billion in 2004-05, demonstrating a growth of just 15% to about $23 billion in 2005-06. "A spectacular annual growth of 35-40% is now a prerequisite in order to reach the $40 billion target," he says.
Says US Embassy Spokesperson David Kennedy: "The US-Indian relationship is growing rapidly, and the Embassy and three Consulates are adding staff and resources to meet its demands."
Beginning with deputy chief of mission Geoffrey Pyatt who took over in June this year, the US Embassy has a new minister consular for economic affairs, John Davison and a new minister consular for commercial affairs, Carmine Daloisio.
Peter Kaesner and Holly Higgins will head the visa and agricultural affairs, respectively. The list is long and goes to new second secretaries in various groups.
To ensure that the reach is national, the US government has embarked on the construction of a Rs 370-crore US Consulate in Mumbai to be completed by March 2008. This 4.5 hectare property will house nine buildings with a total built-up area of 18,700 sq m.
There is also hectic work to strengthen the Embassy's presence in south through Hyderabad as a key city that has been identified for promoting trade relations.
The next milestone in the Indo-US trade relationship is meeting of the joint CEO Forum where ten top chief executives from each side will meet in October this year.