India

Overview - India, the world's fifth-largest economy by nominal GDP, has undergone substantial economic transformation over the past few decades. In 2020, the country's GDP stood at USD 2.59 trillion 1. Despite the setbacks of the COVID-19 pandemic, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) predicted a sharp rebound for the Indian economy, with a growth rate of 12.5% in 2021 2. India has a mixed economy with agriculture, manufacturing, and service sectors. As of 2020, the service sector contributes over 54% to India's GDP, followed by industry (29%) and agriculture (16%) 3. The country has become an attractive hub for foreign direct investment (FDI), with a total
FDI inflow of USD 81.72 billion in the fiscal year 2020-2021 4.
Footnotes

World Bank. (2021). GDP (current US$) - India. World Bank Data. ↩
International Monetary Fund. (2021). World Economic Outlook. IMF. ↩
Central Statistics Office, India. (2021). National Accounts Statistics. CSO. ↩
Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT). (2021). Fact Sheet on Foreign Direct Investment. DPIIT. ↩

Economic Strengths

Large and Rapidly Growing Market: India has the second-largest population in the world and a rapidly growing middle class, offering enormous market potential 1.
Strong Information Technology Sector: India is a global leader in IT services and software outsourcing. The country's IT and business services sector is expected to grow by 7.3% in 2021, reaching USD 194 billion 2.
Significant Labor Force: India has one of the largest labor forces in the world, with a significant portion being young, which presents opportunities for a demographic dividend 3.
Growing Manufacturing Sector: Under the "Make in India" initiative, the manufacturing sector has seen steady growth. The manufacturing PMI in India averaged 52.30 points from 2012 until 2021 4.
Attractive Investment Destination: India has witnessed robust inflows of foreign direct investment (FDI), receiving USD 81.72 billion in FDI in the fiscal year 2020-2021 5.
Solid Research and Development (R&D): India is recognized for its R&D capabilities, particularly in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries 6.
Rich Natural Resources: India is endowed with vast natural resources, including significant reserves of coal, iron ore, bauxite, and copper 7.

Footnotes

United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. (2020). World Population Prospects 2020. UN DESA. ↩
NASSCOM. (2021). IT-BPM Industry in India. NASSCOM. ↩
World Bank. (2021). Labor force, total - India. World Bank Data. ↩
IHS Markit. (2021). IHS Markit India Manufacturing PMI. Trading Economics. ↩
Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT). (2021). Fact Sheet on Foreign Direct Investment. DPIIT. ↩
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (2020). OECD Science, Technology and Innovation Outlook 2020. OECD. ↩
Indian Bureau of Mines. (2020). Indian Mineral Yearbook 2020. IBM. ↩

Economic Weaknesses -

Population and Poverty: Despite economic growth, poverty remains an issue. In 2019, around 22% of the Indian population lived below the poverty line 1.
Unemployment: The country faces high unemployment rates. In 2020, the unemployment rate spiked to around 7.11% due to the pandemic, the highest in the past decade 2.
Infrastructure: Inadequate infrastructure, especially in rural areas, hampers economic development 3.
Education and Skill Gap: A lack of access to quality education and the resulting skill gap is a significant challenge. Despite progress, the literacy rate in India was only 77.7% in 2021 4.
Corruption: Corruption and bureaucracy create inefficiencies and pose barriers to business 5.
Over-dependence on Monsoons: The agricultural sector, employing around 42% of the country's workforce, is largely dependent on monsoon rains, making it vulnerable to climate changes 6.
Socio-economic Inequality: There's a wide gap in income and human development indices among different social groups and between urban and rural areas 7.

Footnotes

World Bank. (2019). Poverty & Equity Data Portal. World Bank. ↩
Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE). (2020). Unemployment in India: A Statistical Profile. CMIE. ↩
World Economic Forum. (2019). Global Competitiveness Report. WEF. ↩
UNESCO Institute for Statistics. (2021). Education: Literacy rate. UIS. ↩
Transparency International. (2020). Corruption Perceptions Index. Transparency International. ↩
Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare, India. (2021). Annual Report. MOAFW. ↩
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). (2020). Human Development Report. UNDP. ↩

Unless otherwise noted, the facts below come from the CIA Fact Book - https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/india/#people-and-society

Terrain	upland plain (Deccan Plateau) in south, flat to rolling plain along the Ganges, deserts in west, Himalayas in north
Location	Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and Pakistan
Percentage of English Spoken	10 to 30%
Population	1,399,179,585 (2023 est.)
High Tech Cities	Hyderabad. Hyderabad is known as the HITECH city of India. Chennai Mumbai. Kolkata. Ahmedabad. Delhi & NCR. Thiruvanthapura From https://www.homebazaar.com/knowledge/it-hubs-in-india/
Main Industries	textiles, chemicals, food processing, steel, transportation equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery, software, pharmaceuticals
GDP	8.68% (2021 est.)
Government Type	federal parliamentary republic
Recent History
Urbanization	6.4% of total population (2023)
Internet Connectivity	46% (2021 est.)
Moody's Credit Rating	Baa3 (2020)
Travel Advisory	Value
Corporate Headquarters	1. Tata Group 2. Aditya Birla Group 3. Infosys 4. HCL Technologies 5. Wipro 6. Google India 7. Amazon India 8. Apple India 9. Microsoft India 10. Nestle India From https://startuptalky.com/top-mncs-india/
NATO Member	No
Corruption Index	Score of 40 80 out of 180 countries From https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ind
VAT Tax	18% on Digital Advertising From https://www.avalara.com/vatlive/en/country-guides/asia/india/india-gst-on-electronic-services.html