By NNN-PTI,
London : Indian entrepreneurs are set to acquire more companies abroad than foreign firms taking over companies in India, according to a latest assessment.
The study by consultants KPMG, released as part of the Emerging Markets International Acquisition Tracker (EMIAT), shows that acquisitions by Indian firms will soon outnumber those inbound deals involving foreign firms snapping up Indian targets.
The EMIAT, which tracks trade-buyer deals between emerging and developed economies on a six-monthly basis from the start of 2003, now shows 322 completed deals where Indian trade buyers have acquired companies in the major developed economies.
This compares to 340 deals completed in the opposite direction (developed economy trade buyers buying into India).
KPMG said that with outbound deals now having outnumbered inbound deals for each of the last three six-month periods, India now seemed well set to become a net “deal exporter” in the next EMIAT in 2009.
Jeremy Butler, director with KPMG’s New and Emerging Markets practice in Birmingham, said: “This is testament to the growing power of the Indian corporate base. At a time when everyone is talking about the credit crunch and Sovereign Wealth funds, Indian trade buyers have simply continued doing what they’ve been doing for several years now.
“As acquirers, they are now serious players on the world scene. In sporting terms, there is strength in depth here too; this is not just about the headline acquisition by Indian titans such as Tata. This is about an ability to strike overseas deals filtering down throughout the Indian corporate scene.”