The US elections are nearing D-day and the biggest question on everybody’s mind is will it or won't it affect the business of outsourcing.
Earlier Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama made headlines when he said that the US companies shipping jobs outside the United States must be taxed.
Obama had evidently sent a worry wave through India Inc, but now his advisor, Nelson W Cunningham, is now trying to underplay the presidential candidate’s earlier remarks, clearly putting the onus on business houses to take that final, ‘sensitive' call.
“Outsourcing is inevitable. Jobs will go where they will be handled most efficiently. We cannot put up walls and barriers against that,” said Cunningham.
India's software and services exports stood at nearly $40 billion during financial year 2008, with the US as its largest market. While skeptics may discount the Indo-US future trade earnings, some experts believe that the two countries are like Siamese twins, who have to engage with each other.
C K Prahalad, Paul and McCracken Professor at Ross School of Business, said,“ I think India has tremendous opportunity to become the innovation partner for the US companies. I feel it will strengthen the relationship a lot better and it’s also difficult for either India Inc or the US companies to disengage from each other.”
Meanwhile, Ron Somers, President of US-India Business Council (USIBC) said that the present condition was a dark moment in the US economy, but markets like India will pull US forward.
“India will be an anchor for the US and the slowdown will be beneficial for the Indo-US business ties,” Somers said.
If we were to believe the optimists, then it would certainly not be difficult to achieve the $50 billion target for bilateral trade between the world's largest economic power and the largest democracy.