Author: Stephen Manallack

Former President, Australia India Business Council, Victoria and Author, You Can Communicate; Riding the Elephant; Soft Skills for a Flat World (published by Tata McGraw-Hill INDIA); Communicating Your Personal Brand. Director, EastWest Academy Pty Ltd and Trainer/Speaker/Mentor in Leadership, Communication and Cross Cultural Communication. Passionate campaigner for closer western relations with India. Stephen Manallack is a specialist on “Doing Business with India” and advisor/trainer on “Cross-Cultural Understanding”. He is a Director of EastWest Academy Pty Ltd which provides strategic advice and counsel regarding business relations with India. A regular speaker in India on leadership and global communication, his most recent speaking tour included a speech to students of the elite Indian university, Amity University, in Noida. He also spoke at a major Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) global summit, the PR Consultants Association of India in Delhi, the Symbiosis University in Pune and Cross-Cultural Training for Sundaram Business Services in Chennai. He has visited India on business missions on 10 occasions and led three major trade missions there. He provides cross-cultural training – Asia and the west.

Happy 26 January – national days for Australia and India

Among the many shared interests of India and Australia, on 26 January both countries celebrate national days.

For Australia, 26 January is AUSTRALIA DAY and the date was chosen for the 1788 arrival of the first fleet and the raising of the British flag.

The Commonwealth of Australia was born in 1901 with Britain controlling Australia’s foreign policy. Independence was offered in 1931 and taken up in late 1942. From federation until World War 2, foreign policy was controlled by Britain, and Australia was expected to fight alongside Britain (as it did so in both world wars).

For India, 26 January is REPUBLIC DAY, the date of the adoption of the India constitution. Each year, India celebrates three national festivals : Republic Day on 26 January, Independence Day on 15 August and Gandhi Jayanti on 2 October.

As the two nations – Australia and India – come closer together, this day provides part of the shared heritage.

Wishing much happiness to both countries today!

Great next era for India-Australia, says Hall Chadwick

Peter Pryn is a regular visitor to India and assists market entry for both India and Australia

As we approach Indian Republic Day and Australia Day – both on 26 January – here is a great message from my good friend Peter Pryn, Director of Hall Chadwick. This firm has a long commitment to building India-Australia business relations.

Change brings opportunity

This year, we see there to be great opportunities for international enterprises entering the Australian market. While there are niggling concerns about the Omicron variant, the post-COVID landscape is certainly one of rapid technological change, a transformational shakeup of global trading norms has occurred and there is an increasing focus on sustainable business. There is no doubt the way Australian business manage supply chains and source skilled staff has changed over the last two years. We see our clients, irrespective of scale, continue to look at ways to minimize supply chain interruptions to achieve an acceptable level of profitability.

Looking ahead: India – Australia relations

The Australian economy is very strong and the trend of high levels of foreign investment is forecast to continue. Along with a further easing of border restrictions in 2022, we are likely see a more aggressive migration program to catch up on lost population growth. This could be announced in the Federal Budget in May. We hope to see an expansive trade partnership (CECA) between India and Australia come to fruition before year-end. In a joint statement from Ministers Mr. Piyush Goyal and Mr. Dan Tehan last December, officials have been directed to speed up the negotiations.

These are all signs of a great next era in India – Australia business relations. We encourage you to start a conversation with us about opportunities to collaborate on business initiatives in 2022.

We wish you all the best for your Republic Day and the year ahead.

Peter Pryn

Director

+61 3 9820 6400
ppryn@hallchadwickmelb.com.au

India’s NSE world’s largest derivatives exchange

The National Stock Exchange in India’s finance capital, Mumbai

According to the Futures Industry Association (FIA), the National Stock Exchange of India has surpassed the New York Stock Exchange as the world’s largest derivatives exchange for the third year in a row in terms of the number of contracts traded in 2021. In addition, according to the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE) figures for 2021, the exchange placed fourth in terms of cash equities trading.

In the year 2021, the total number of registered investors on the NSE surpassed the 50 million milestone, reaching 55 million. The daily average turnover of equity futures has surged by 4.2 times in the recent decade, from US$ 4.47 billion in 2011 to US$ 18.98 billion in 2021. The daily average turnover of the cash market increased by 6.2 times within the same period, from US$ 1.50 billion in 2011 to US$ 9.3 billion in 2021.

The daily average turnover in currency derivatives surged by 83% from US$ 1.91 billion in 2011 to US$ 3.49 billion in 2021.

According to the exchange, academic research has demonstrated that a well-functioning derivatives market can provide a number of advantages, including greater liquidity and improved price discovery for the underlying assets.

The NSE recently announced that derivatives on the Nifty Midcap Select index will be available beginning January 24, 2022. With broad participation from all classes of investors in the current equity market rise, the midcap segment has come into focus, resulting in greater liquidity in these companies.

5 essential tips for doing business with India in 2022

Generation change is seen in shopping malls across India

Growing at around 9 per cent this year, India is well on track to be number 3 or 4 economy in the world. It is also one of the youngest countries on earth – with around 50% of the population aged under 25. Demand outstrips supply – for everything.

Here are some tips that might help your experience, but keep in mind you will find many variations and contradictions of these points in the very diverse and exciting India market:

India is many countries in one

Differences are not just seen in the North, South, East and West, India is truly many countries in one and you need to be ready for cultural diversity. While Mumbai is the fast and flashy financial capital, it is also a tough place because everything is done on grand scale and at great speed. New Delhi is more formal, also more liveable, and is more than a political capital – it is a powerful business city. Chennai is one of my favourites, embracing that slower southern pace and the values that shine in southern businesses. Pune is sophisticated and a major player across many sectors. Bengaluru is technology but much more as well. Regions have varying strengths, so research is the key.

Market entry strategies should think longer term

India is looking for more than a quick sale – it looks to build relationships and create trust that can last a lifetime. India is what we call a “collective” culture – everything is done within the group and if you make it into the group, you will make it there. This means your first venture should probably not be to send the sales and business development team over there is search of deals. Rather, lead from the top to create relationships – deals will follow.

Find your local Indian team and culture

Companies that have tried to impose their Head office teams and cultures on India operations rarely succeed. A priority should be to identify Indians who can lead locally – with your support. Accepting that the corporate culture might not be an exact mirror of your HQ culture is also vital – with care and guidance over time, your Indian operations will reflect key elements of central culture but will bring added value too.

“Yes” can mean “maybe” or “no”

Indians are among the most courteous and generous hosts on the planet. On top of this, their culture demands that they never provide an outright rejection or “no” statement, even when this is clearly the only answer. The dumbest question for a business to ask in India is “can you help me with market entry for my products?” The answer will always be “yes” and you will sit idle for a long time back home until you realise this is not the right question. Within Indian culture built so solidly on relationship above all else, the word “no” is a real relationship breaker and is rarely or never used. “Yes” can in fact mean “maybe” or even “no” and you need to look for the signs. Like most of Asia, Indians are indirect communicators. If that is not complex enough, consider that India has 26 major languages.

Learn the art of flexibility and patience

Being patient and flexible is an asset, even if you come from a country that likes to be blunt, direct and structured. Most Indian communication is indirect, so it can take some time to work out what the real issues are. India is full of surprises and you cope best through being flexible. Dropping any “one rule for all” approach is a good start.

More good news! Consider Bangladesh – which for many symbolises everything wrong with the world – take another look

Literacy in Bangladesh jumped from 35% to 74%

Bangladesh, home to 160 million people, for many people in the west is a symbol of everything wrong with the unequal world.

But take another look.

It celebrated a ‘development miracle’ in 2021, its 50th year of independence. In the last three decades, GDP per capita has increased seven fold, 24 million people have been lifted out of poverty, life expectancy has risen to 73 years, infant and maternal mortality rates have fallen by a factor of five, the literacy rate has increased from 35% to 74%, and more than 97% of the population now has access to electricity, up from 62% in 2014.

Worth going over that again – it is genuine good news.

India economy has weathered the pandemic and set for growth – ASK Capital Management report

ASK Capital Management is a Singapore based entity with a focus on managing and advising India centric investments for institutional and family office clients. Their latest report shows how the Indian economy has weathered the pandemic and is set for growth:

This report relates to ASK India Opportunities Fund – Fund 1

The rapid rise in COVID cases due to the new Omicron variant, hawkish tone by major Central Banks around the world and persistent inflation contributed to a volatile December for the global equity markets. Despite this the markets ended on a positive note with most markets registering positive returns in the month. India was amongst the better performing markets with benchmark BSE500 ending up 3.2% in USD terms while the Fund was up 2.7%, net of fees in December. For the year 2021, the Fund returned 29.7%, net of fees compared to 27.6% for BSE500.

After another year spent in the shadow of the COVID, we begin 2022 with a new variant of the virus disrupting resumption of normal life. This, along with inflationary pressures and a move away from high liquidity and accommodative stance of Central Banks are the biggest risks to global economy for the year. While the new variant of the virus appears less fatal, the disruption means global supply chain issues will take longer to resolve. Tighter liquidity and end of cheap money means investors will have to temper expectations of returns in the new year and bottom-up stock picking will become crucial differentiator.

The Indian economy has weathered the pandemic induced slowdown well due to the proactive and effective steps taken by the RBI and the Government. The economy is above pre-COIVD levels in size and expected to grow around 9% in FY22 and 7.5%-7.9% in FY2023 by various estimates, one of the highest growing major economies in the world. As described in the past, lower debt on corporate balance sheets, controlled NPAs in banking sector and Government policies such as “Make In India” and Production Linked Incentives (PLIs) for various sectors should revive a domestic capex cycle.

While the recovery in India has been strong, it has also been uneven with the rural segment affected more from the Delta variant in Q1FY22. This should normalise over the course of the year and aid in demand recovery. Similarly, hiring activity continues to remain strong which should support demand.

As commodity prices and inflation stabilise, companies should report increase in margins over the coming quarters as prices increases are passed on to consumers. Thus, companies with higher pricing power and better cost controls should be able to deliver superior earnings growth with likely increase in market share. This has historically been the case for our portfolio companies, and we see no reason that this cannot be the case again. Our expectation is for the portfolio to deliver an average earnings CAGR of 26% over the next 3 years.

During the month we exited from Pidilite Industries and added Avenue SuperMart to the portfolio. We believe Avenue SuperMart is a well-oiled business model in a large opportunity landscape with a strong focus on low procurement and operating costs. Its store ownership model, right store size and low supply chain cost with auto replenishments help it to maintain low operating cost to achieve the key pillar of its success – everyday low cost and everyday low price. In a predominantly food and grocery business (52% revenue contribution) with wafer-thin margins (15% gross margin), the company is able to offer everyday low pricing, unlike peers that offer discounts on select days in a week or month, creating a competitive edge.

Contact:

Nikhil Iyer, CFA, Head of Institutional Business, APAC

ASK Capital Management Pte Ltd

m: +65 83800064 EMAIL nikhil.iyer@ask-capital.com

https://www.askfinancials.com/

Yes, it’s already time to revisit your “new year resolutions”!

We are now a few weeks into 2022 so this is a good time to revisit your “new year resolutions” and perhaps take a different view.

This is from a friend and colleague Debashish Chatterjee who is a Director of Indian Institute of Management in Kozhikode, India:

3 Unusual Insights for 2022

#1. We begin the year with resolutions. They are often a laundry list of personal desires. A desire is an energy formation. When your desires are woven around a web personal pleasures, the energy they receive comes from your ego. This energy is limited. When your desires are for the greater good, the whole universe supports your desires. Enhance the circumference of your desires, you are bound to succeed.

#2. You do not have a busy life. You only have a busy mind. The world out there is nothing but a projection of the mind. Slow down the mind. Your world will transform around you. You will begin to see things that you had overlooked earlier. You will fumble less and create more.

#3. That which has a beginning also has an end. This was Buddha’s insight into the impermanence of life. Begin with the end in mind. Ask where are my actions and thoughts eventually leading me?

From INTO INDIA and Debashish, have a great 2022!

Happy New Year and a tolerant, multicultural future

A significant majority of people in wealthy countries now believe that having people of different ethnic, religious, and racial backgrounds improves society.

In the US, Canada, UK, Australia, New Zealand and Taiwan, 8 out of 10 people believe greater diversity is a benefit, and even in relatively culturally homogenous countries like Japan and Greece, the share has increased by double digits in the last four years.

Source – Future Crunch

View at Medium.com

Will 2022 see continued “hard diplomacy” or can we embrace “smart” and “soft” diplomacy?

INTO INDIA wishes you all a peaceful, prosperous, safe and healthy new year for 2022. This is our last post for this year.

The question for next year is how will we all get on better than we did in 2021?

I hope we will see “smart diplomacy” dominate next year – this is the kind of diplomacy that works with cultural and cross border differences. It is not insulting and does not force the other country into an aggressive response. It takes into account major global shared challenges such as climate change, Industry 4 and the continuing pandemic.

It is “smart” to talk to other countries in a way which allows them to make their own positive contribution to the debate – does not corner them into hostility.

Australia has done some “smart” diplomacy things this year – such as using former Prime Minister Abbott as a special envoy, a move well received in Asia.

Hoping countries will all be a lot smarter in 2022.

It would make it a good year for all of us.

How the QUAD can help Australia in trade talks with India

At last night’s meeting in Melbourne of the Australian Institute of International Affairs, Trade Minister Dan Tehan MP made reference to how the QUAD could be useful for future trade agreements.

The QUAD includes Australia, India, Japan and the USA. It focuses on supply chains and “independent and free region” – that is, a buffer to China.

But it might be a big help on trade.

India wants to use the QUAD as it steps up global trade relations.

And Australia already has FTA deals with the other two QUAD parties – Japan and USA.

The Quad is a diplomatic network of four countries committed to supporting an open, inclusive and resilient region. It complements our other bilateral, regional and multilateral cooperation, including with ASEAN.

The Quad aims to respond to the defining challenges of our time, including COVID-19 vaccines, critical and emerging technology, cyber security, climate change, infrastructure, maritime security, countering disinformation, counter-terrorism, and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.