Victoria strengthens trade ties with India
Victoria strengthens trade ties with India
Victoria is taking a delegation of 20 Victorian IT firms to India later this year to show off the state's ICT capabilities and establish new trade links with existing and potential Indian business partners.
Marsha Thomson, the Minister for Information & Communication Technology, will lead this delegation to have a presence at BangaloreIT.com 2004 to improve the healthy relationship between the two nations.
Trade between Victoria and India accounts for about $480 million each year and three of the four largest ICT companies - Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys Technologies Ltd, Satayam Computer Services Ltd - have invested in the Victorian ICT industry.
Thomson added: "India and Australia have emerging strengths in the information industries and the network is one way to enhance business relationships between the two countries.
"BangaloreIT.com 2004 is a must visit for anyone wanting to tap into the Indian market and follows Victoria's Opening Doors to Export Plan which identifies India as one of the three key markets for export growth along with North Asia and the Middle East."
Over the past three years, the state of Victoria has given its support to more than 265 companies that wish to attend technology trade fairs such as this. Thomson said that as a direct result, Victorian companies have gone onto secure export sales of $300 million.
Victoria also has strong educational and tourism ties with India after a record 7000 Indian students enrolled in Victorian universities in 2003 - an increase of 200 students on the previous year. 42 percent of all Indians who visited Australia during 2003 chose to spend their time in Victoria.
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