politics

Japan to invest $42 bil in India to strengthen economic ties

48 Comments
By SHEIKH SAALIQ

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48 Comments
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Wasted money on an unreliable ally.

6 ( +21 / -15 )

Nothing against India and Indians, but untill when Japan and other coutries have to help them regarding fight against poverty?

-1 ( +7 / -8 )

Japan to invest $42 bil in India to strengthen economic ties

What next? Japan will open itself to India trainee, just like Japan did to Vietnam?

https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2020/10/f8536e95c87d-update2-japan-vietnam-leaders-affirm-cooperation-in-s-china-sea.html

1 ( +7 / -6 )

Why not spend the £42 billion on helping low paid workers and families instead of non tax payers in another country who in the main couldn’t care less what happens in Japan?

7 ( +16 / -9 )

Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Saturday said his country will invest $42 billion in India over the next five years in a deal that is expected to boost bilateral trade.

To boost he international image of Japan and prop up Japan Inc.:Everything.

For the workers of Japan: Nothing. They are the expendable resource to achieve those goals.

8 ( +16 / -8 )

You could invest $1 trillion in India and yet nothing would change. The roads would still remain broken and the infrastructure still unchanged. Also the high speed rail was the most absurd waste of taxpayers money. India has a shoddy safety record in normal trains, no way in hell would I go in a high speed train.

Before anyone says I'm racist, I'm Indian myself.

14 ( +21 / -7 )

"...his country will invest..." 

I assumed private-sector corporations would be investing, based on a investment decisions that evaluate such things as profitability, risk, etc. of specific projects. I guess not. So you gotta wonder how much government public funding will be involved under the direction of a government makes repeatedly promises to its people of "fiscal consolidation," mainly to maintain health care, pensions, etc. at home.

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

If this amoung of money would result on India getting rid of poverty, I would understand, but what I can see is, the Indian government is just using Japan and other nations to get the money, but we don't seen any development made by them with Japanese money.

4 ( +7 / -3 )

We need to think about what this "investment" really is. As in most of these Japanese initiatives, it is mostly corporate welfare for Japanese companies that get contracts for huge development projects, that often have questionable benefits for local populations.

12 ( +13 / -1 )

Kishida now can't say anything about China not condemning Russia's invasion. So much for trying to be the leader in Asia. Nothing more than a door to door salesman.

2 ( +7 / -5 )

It seems a lot of commenters doesn’t understand why Japan had to invest in India. Because it’s the only place left to invest where companies can still make profits out of. There is a reason why we called it investment.

A big reason why choose India is because of it’s large workforce and stability. Where else can they invest these days to create a supply chain? Now that the government is trying to rely less on china. Is not easy to find a suitable nation to build factories with rising cost these days and still make it profitable. Africa and middle east won’t work because of too many wars, coup and bombing. Latin America is involve in drug wars and Venezuela is being sanction. With now Russia getting sanction too and Myanmar having still so much trouble, companies are now in desperate need to find a place to move their operation to.

And those who said invest into japan itself clearly doesn’t know the problems involved with this. We have sever weather conditions yearly. Floods, typhoons, earthquakes etc. Then you also have to get enough workers which means you have to bring more migrant workers here to train them. In the end the cost will only increased. So the only place suitable to invest in and able to make sure things run smoothly without politics problem or natural disasters is India. And we always had a good relationship with them. In fact if you look it up, countless nations didn’t support the sanctions. Except Europe and US, they don’t have many others nations willing to stand at their side.

4 ( +10 / -6 )

A "developed" country investing in a "developing" country means corporate benefits for both sides. Neither party has the workers of their countries in mind.

It's beneficial for Japan corp to invest in a country like India because of its resources and population (i.e., lots of people who live in poverty despite working more hours than most of us), and India corp benefits by selling their goods to wealthier countries. It only helps that both prime ministers are far-right nationalists who love talk about "stability" and military strength.

India won't "solve" its poverty as much as "developed" countries won't stop its reliance on it. If you're worried where your tax money is going, worry about corporate welfare, not the people of India. Most of the money won't reach any of them.

8 ( +9 / -1 )

Hiro

The future of value creation will be mostly high-value, technological innovations much like Tesla's Vision AI system. If Tesla succeeds in their robot, then the low wage advantage of developing countries will go out the window. Vladimir Putin said it best - the nation that leads in AI will be the ruler of the world.

Japan (And other countries) should focus on AI, high-level manufacturing and technology, not on whichever country can provide cheap labor.

-5 ( +2 / -7 )

Japanese Government have a habit of throwing money to other countries but when it comes down to handing its own citizens cash handouts to deal with things like the corona virus pandemic, natural disasters then they will move mountains to avoid giving these! So many people are suffering from hardship in Japan due to job losses and shorten working hours for the past 2 years yet they only handed out 100,000yen across the board once and cried about this handout like it was the end of the world!

1 ( +3 / -2 )

India isn't the worst place to invest, but its pretty close. I think the potential is there, but the infrastructure is pretty poor and the culture is backwards. Not to mention safety. Too many rapes and other crimes. My students were supposed to go on a trip to Africa a few years back. They were excited and their parents gave permission. However, for some reason the destination changed to India and every one of the families decided against it.

4 ( +8 / -4 )

Shame on India for not labeling Russia’s leader a dirty lying war criminal yet.

Why India needs to take a side with the west. Do they have the greatest track records? Joe Biden and others imposed sanctions on Russian oil and gas, and he is looking for oil from Saudi Arabia and Venezuela (is not it contradictory?). What Saudi Arabia is doing in Yemen? What about the US support for Latin America's or the middle-eastern dictatorship. Each country decides its policy based on their own interests.

3 ( +8 / -5 )

it’s the only place left to invest where companies can still make profits out of.

That doesn't seem relevant. The story says Japan - not its companies -- will be making the investments, suggesting this is more about politics than profits.

2 ( +5 / -3 )

Most JT "experts" don't know about the benefits of being the World's largest Creditor!!!

Japan is the World's largest Creditor Nation. By miles too.

Not China, The US of A, Germany, the UK, or Australia.

Least of all, Korea or Vietnam.

-5 ( +4 / -9 )

Good decision instead of spending on American weapons of war. Japan and India can collaborate as a counterbalance to China.

JICA, the Japan International Cooperation Agency, can assist to help India grow more food, expand on solar and other green energy and also to improve on its sanitation and other essential infrastructure.

Indians are some of the brightest brains..just look at the number of Indians in research in USA, UK, etc. Or the Indians who are leading global organizations. Boards of Directors chose them for their skills.

I graduated from Japan and now I will also look at finding opportunities to invest in India.

I am an overseas-born Chinese who grew up in a multi-racial community. I do not embrace the racial bias about Indians...there are good and bad people in any country.

I am leading major infrastructure development in Tunisia and I am already looking at the cheap and creative ideas of rural Indians. Give India a chance...Make Peace Not War.

3 ( +6 / -3 )

When Abe visited India in 2017, Modi announced that the Japan funded bullet train will be up and running in 5 years time.

Last checked, the timeline has been pushed to 2026 now.

Hope all these investments don't go the way of the bullet train - high decibel announcements for the sake of headlines but not much progress on the ground.

-2 ( +3 / -5 )

Most JT "experts" don't know about the benefits of being the World's largest Creditor!!!

And workers can take that to the bank?

More like the banks are the ones reaping the rewards.

5 ( +5 / -0 )

"Hope all these investments don't go the way of the bullet train - high decibel announcements for the sake of headlines but not much progress on the ground."

A tiny fraction of your time spent on a search would have revealed why and who's at fault.

Not Japan for sure.

"https://urbantransportnews.com/news/indias-first-bullet-train-project-stuck-in-maharashtra-civil-tender-cancelled"

-9 ( +1 / -10 )

"More like the banks are the ones reaping the rewards."

Ever wondered why is Japan not bothered by its massive domestic debt?

-4 ( +3 / -7 )

Ever wondered why is Japan not bothered by its massive domestic debt?

The workers of Japan and not the monolith which the LDP and Japan Inc. imagines itself have certainly been bothered a lot by decades of stagnation and rising taxes.

4 ( +6 / -2 )

"The workers of Japan and not the monolith which the LDP and Japan Inc. imagines itself have certainly been bothered a lot by decades of stagnation and rising taxes."

Has the country collapsed though?

-5 ( +4 / -9 )

Meanwhile, back home, many businesses are still waiting for the promised April 2020 aid they have never gotten, and just last week the government floated the idea of giving a WHOPPING ¥5000 to pensioners because they're worried about votes as pensions go down by the hundreds of thousands of yen. Maybe they can offer the latter coupons instead?

0 ( +8 / -8 )

1) Japan is heavily invested in China, the US, the UK, the EU, anywhere else you can think of!

Don't you think it's indicative of something when Japan is looking to invest in non-Japanese entities rather than their own? The majority of Americans invest in American stocks, because we consider foreign companies as trash. I would rather invest in TSLA than Toyota. A high foreign investment rate is actually an indication that the Japanese government and corporations don't have faith in Japanese institutions.

2) Japan's biggest sector is other services (not tourism, as I know you're thinking of it).

Actually, it's motor vehicles, and they're about to be stomped by Tesla. The automobile sector is also linked to thousands of small and mid-sized businesses and supply or provide services to Japanese automobile sector. All of those are going down.

-7 ( +1 / -8 )

"A tiny fraction of your time spent on a search would have revealed why and who's at fault.

Not Japan for sure."

If Japan wants to invest in a country where public infrastructure projects are mired in bureaucracy and red tape and nothing gets done on time, it is no one else's fault. Delays in projects usually means the construction costs go up likewise and the returns on investment are questionable. But sure, it creates a lot of goodwill for Japan.

-2 ( +5 / -7 )

EvilBuddha

I believe the intention is to build India up so that they can challenge China economically.

I'm skeptical that India can ever compete with China. Disregarding the corruption and massive red tape, the Indian government seems hostile to foreign companies, even more so than China. China is at least willing to be flexible with foreign companies if the foreign company can provide something in return such as training the domestic population.

India seems reluctant to let foreign companies compete with domestic firms. They already fell behind the EV game and let China take the lead.

2 ( +8 / -6 )

Corrupt country it will all go to curry oligarchs. Jp govt. are suckers. Also the Indians are not even supporting Ukraine, what a selfish heartless country. Stop wasting my tax dollars.

-1 ( +6 / -7 )

This actually seems like one of the smartest economic moves I have seen Japan make in...almost ever.

Huge independent market, still a lot of room for growth, and not beholden to the American/western powers that be. I almost wonder if Japan is looking at the current sanction war and thinking that some diversity is a smart move. I certainly would be hedging my bets as much as possible if I were them.

I hope it won't stop just at India, but it is definitely a big one to get involved with.

0 ( +3 / -3 )

India has long been recognized as a corrupt nation.

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/india-ranks-85th-among-180-countries-in-global-corruption-index-transparency-international-report-2730018

India ranks even lower in media freedom, to be expected when an authoritarian like Modi is running things.

-2 ( +2 / -4 )

Their incredible array of domestic problems notwithstanding, I've long admired the way the Indians march to the beat of their own drum in geopolitics. Ever since they sent the perfidious Brits packing in 1947, they've cleverly played the West against the East, and they don't take orders from either Washington, Moscow, or Beijing. They also protect their domestic culture and don't get caught up in Western woke nonsense.

-2 ( +3 / -5 )

They also protect their domestic culture and don't get caught up in Western woke nonsense.

It's almost impressive how some people are able to turn every subject into some kind of culture war issue, which is exactly what they accuse "the left" of doing. If "protecting one's culture" (whatever that means) comes at the cost of rising violence against Muslims, consistently terrible gender equality (140th out of 156 countries last year), unimaginable income inequality, then I'm not sure what is being protected.

Either way, these points aren't really relevant to this deal the prime ministers are making. What is in question here is "development", which means profitable extraction of resources from the land and labour from the people for the benefit of the few on both sides of the deal.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

What is breakdown of this $42billion investment? Most of it must be Japanese Corps direct investments plus minor Japanese government's Yen loan. Kishida was top sales force

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Japanese prime minister actually looks like he is 80s tourist wanting to solo travel in India and neighbouring countries. Now that he has done, so it's ticked off from his journey destination list.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

Is Japan trying to use the huge investment as a political tool, to entice India back to consolidate its somewhat fluid involvement in the ailing QUAD?

-2 ( +2 / -4 )

Paying ransom for political praising from India!

-5 ( +0 / -5 )

I have an impression Kishida seems making bolder and quicker decisions wrt Japan's sanctions on Russia, for example, than what I wonder would be like if it were Abe Cabinet ( when considering his endeavor with Vladimir for years)  or his(Kishida's) remark quickly made against an idea of nuclear sharing provided by Abe faction.

-2 ( +1 / -3 )

This is not a donation for poverty reduction. This is corporate investment in one of the biggest markets in the world.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Simian Lane,

You need to understand India's history and how the west and US treated India for last 70 years.

1) India need not take sides as it is not India's problem. India has actually sent a lot of help to Ukraine against Russia's wish. India has been speaking both the presidents to find out a mutual solution.

2) India forged a relationship with the Soviet Union during the Cold War. That has carried over into the present day because of mutual interest and nostalgia, but the biggest reason is defence.

3) After India's independence from the British rule in 1947, there was noone to help India. Immediately after the independence, a weak India lost 1962 war with China. US at that time decided to take Pakistan as its strategic ally, so India was left with the remaining super power USSR.

You need to remember that Pakistan (a new country) was formed out of India on the basis of religion. Pakistan i.e. the Islamic Republic of Pakistan was formed and America helped it overwhelmingly.

4) In 1971 India’s war with Pakistan, US President Richard Nixon had a terrible idea. Under the pretext of evacuating American citizens from the warzone, Nixon ordered the US Seventh Fleet’s Task Force 74, led by the nuclear powered aircraft carrier Enterprise, to proceed towards the Bay of Bengal to threaten India!!! Do you think India can forget these actions? Can you really trust America?

USSR helped India: On 6 and 13 December 1971, the Soviet Navy dispatched two groups of cruisers and destroyers and a submarine armed with nuclear missiles from Vladivostok; they trailed US Task Force 74 into the Indian Ocean from 18 December 1971 until 7 January 1972. The Soviets also had a nuclear submarine to help ward off the threat posed by USS Enterprise task force in the Indian Ocean.

USSR helped India when it mattered the most.

5) India has a big neighbour called as - CHINA. There are so many cases of Chinese aggression on the eastern side of India's border. Noone used to give arms to India against China when India needed them badly to defend itself.

So India had to go nuclear because of big brother China as neighbour. When India conducted its defensive nuclear test in 1998, US, Ukraine and EU - EVERYONE sanctioned India. It was Russia that saved India in the security council using Russia Veto power. YES, you read it correctly. UKRAINE voted for sanctions against India.

(India also lost a war with China in 1962, and lost kilometres of kilometres area to China. Remember Tibet actually used to be part of India, and till date many Hindu's travel to Tibet for religious tours).

6) Every time a UN resolution was passed against India, it was only USSR / Russia that helped India against all odds.

7) For more than 5000 years, India has NEVER been an aggressor, in fact India used to be a country from present day Afghanistan to Indonesia, to Cambodia/Thailand. Because of invaders, India has shrunk to its present day form. And Indians see Russia as their true friend in difficult times.

8) In early 2021, when India was struggling to get the vaccines, countries like US kept its vaccines to itself (fair enough). But Russia promptly sent its vaccine Sputnik to India along with huge supply of Oxygen concentrators.

60% of India's defence machinery comes from Russia.

9) If there is No Russia, can someone guarantee that US will come to help India if China does any aggression on India's border? Who can help India? When a war is started everyone just does a lip service, but India has to defend itself with 2 countries Pakistan and China on west and east side border respectively. India has had multiple wars with these 2 countries.

It is very easy to sit in a AC room and comment on India, however none of you have borders right next to China.

With so much help from USSR / Russia for 70+ years, and with no one else to help India - what do you expect India to do?

Well, India has NOT supported Russia, it has only abstained from taking any sides. 

(Over a period of Time, India’s relationship with QUAD, and US has drastically improved. Indians do have sympathy for Ukraine, and whatever is happening is not right, but if India can never go against Russia with above complex situation)

2 ( +2 / -0 )

What could we buy from India???

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

This is not “donation” but is “investment”.

japanese companies will invest in their own companies and factories to produce (automobiles etc) on the land of India, so that they can sell more in South Asia, Middle East, and East Asia.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

This is more for the benefit of Japan than for India.

This is in the interest of Japan to reduce its over dependence on China.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

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