Mark Mobius: India may even surpass Chinese economy with PM Modi at helm

New Delhi, Nov 3 A huge consumer population with a massive production capacity will help India make its mark globally under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, catapulting the country to equal -- maybe even surpass -- the Chinese economy in the future, global investor Mark Mobius said on Tuesday.

India is expected to become the third-largest economy in the world with a GDP of $5 trillion in the next couple of years. Ten years ago, India was the 10th largest economy in the world, with a GDP of $1.9 trillion (at current market prices).

Mobius said that a lot of new investments are coming into India and more and more large companies are looking at embracing the "China+1" strategy.

"India is going to become a favourite destination to establish global supply chains, manufacture components, materials and equipment, which will come at the expense of China in its due course," he noted.

The latest study by Oxford University’s Said Business School (SAS) and Gates Foundation found that India’s PRAGATI platform, led by PM Modi, has reduced delays in 340 major infrastructure projects, cutting timelines from years to months, accelerating the completion of long-delayed projects worth a staggering $205 billion.

According to Mobius, the most important thing PM Modi has done is the digitisation of the Indian economy.

"That has led to great efficiencies and extended to infrastructure growth. You must remember that the internet is part of the infrastructure of any country and PM Modi has done a lot to improve that via various initiatives (Digital India, Make in India, Skill India, IndiaAI Mission and more)," the global investor told IANS.

In addition, "as you travel around India, you see there's a tremendous amount of infrastructure building activities going on, like new roads, bridges, etc. That will probably be accelerated because the expenditure will expand with greater incomes", he added

According to Mobius, some countries, notably China, have taken advantage of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules and there will be "a reset" soon and the "future is very bright for India".