IndiaPost.com - India second best country for business investment: Survey

NEW YORK: India is the second best country for business investment, a new survey of American corporate executives shows. Conducted by Development Counselors International every three years, the "Winning Strategies in Economic Development Marketing" survey has tracked trends in economic development since its inception in 1996. This is the first year respondents were asked to rank the business favorability of the world's 25 largest countries (based on GDP).

Of the 281 corporate executives who responded, 53.1 per cent named China as the most favorable country followed by India (45.1 per cent), Mexico (30.1 per cent), Britain (25.4 per cent) and Canada (22 per cent). The corporate decision-makers who named India as the best for investment cited the country's labour force - including its supply, skill level and cost 65 per cent of the time as the reason for their positive perceptions.

India's "growing economy/business opportunities" and "low overall/operating costs" were named 38 per cent and 18 per cent of the time, respectively. The survey also polled the executives about the best US states for business. Texas, North Carolina and Georgia are viewed as having the best business climates, while California, New York and Michigan were perceived as having the least favorable business climates.

"With the global battle for business more intense than ever, countries and their economic development organizations need to pay close attention to the results of this survey," DCI President Andrew T Levine, said. "Whether accurate or misguided, perceptions about a location's business climate often play a crucial role in site selection where companies invest money and create jobs."