Youth – Into India

India now the straight-forward long term story, not China, but go both!

“India much more straight-forward long term story than China” – Christopher Wood, Equities Analyst, Jefferies

For business and investment, India is now a more straightforward, long-term option than China.

But it is really smart to think BOTH India and China, not one or the other.

The equity strategists are saying it. All the trade commentators are saying get your product or service into India – now.

One equity analyst, Christopher Wood, the global head of equity strategy at Jefferies, said in the latest edition of his immensely popular newsletter to investors called ‘GREED & fear’: “India remains a much more straightforward long-term story than China, which is why GREED & fear has 39 percent of the Asia ex-Japan long-only portfolio, long-term in its focus invested in India and “only” 25 percent in China.”

INTO INDIA points to the incredibly high number of young Indians coming through – called the demographic dividend” – as the big reason to be there.

Time to begin or upgrade with an Indian investment and market entry strategy?

International students welcome in friendly Melbourne

Walking this week along Swanston Street past the Victoria Library and the feeling was like pre-covid. The international students are back in Melbourne.

It was the same up and around Melbourne University, then in Glenferrie Road near Swinburne and education locations across our city.

International students add so much to the life of Melbourne.

And it seems Melbourne works hard to ensure these visiting students have a good welcome into our city – as this article explains…

https://news.melbourne.vic.gov.au/five-reasons-why-melbourne-is-a-great-student-city/

Total honesty in new book by Indian Australian, Nandita Chakraborty

The level of honesty in this new memoir, “Dirty Little Secrets” by Nandita Chakraborty, is at times confronting but always refreshing in a genre where so many writers gloss over the difficult parts.

There is no glossing over. This memoir tells it all. It is brave, meaning she is brave, and she will need to be for the future, as this memoir reports. The book includes accounts of being scammed by a man she “loves” but has never physically met. At first this is hard to understand, but gradually we can see how scammers have the ability to trap us.

It is finally a painful story of the quest for love, the yearning for relationship and the impact of a serious climbing fall, leaving the author with acquired brain injury.

The writing style makes the text more powerful – there is no attempt at embellishment or covering up – the style is direct and allows the reader to make up their own mind.

This is also a story about India and Australia. About the different lives of both countries and of the tough times that migrants experience – not the least being their distance from family and the security of home.

This adventurer has left everything behind. Not surprising, then, that the adventurer stumbles again and again.

Her biggest stumble is found in her lasting views that “love is instant” and that “love conquers everything” – both of which leave her vulnerable to some of the nastiest men you will meet in literature.

But for all that, meeting Nandita is to be in touch with joy, smiles, laughter and the spirit that a good life is ahead.

I for one am looking forward to the second instalment.

Australian Vintage Ltd needs to rethink India strategy – it is not “just like China”

Craig Garvin, CEO, Australian Vintage, is right to enter the India market but needs to find the right way

The company behind McGuigan, Tempus Two and Nepenethe wines has set its sights set on affluent Indian consumers – but it might need to take a second look.

Australian Vintage Limited chief executive Craig Garvin believes the world’s second-most populous country, is “just like China”.

Yes, he is right that there are a million millionaires in Delhi and Mumbai – but does that equate to your market? These are the established wealthy, mainly male, and many are set in their ways.

Is a better market for Australian wines the young emerging wealthy of the future?

India is not “like China” – the Chinese population is much older and India has the youngest population on earth. Millennials and Gen Z are said to amount to around 750 million of India’s population. Known in India as the “demographic dividend”, this young population is the key to market entry for products like wine.

Already we know that sales of red wine are up in major urban centres, driven by demand from young women, educated and in the ranks of professionals and executives.

What distinguishes India for “premium” consumer products is that the market is young, it is emerging, it is a generation that instead of being “born someone” want to “become someone” and females are leading much of the consumer preferences of this young group. That is, it is ripe for change.

There is probably no other market like it in the world.

Other than its four main wine brands McGuigan, Tempus Two, Nepenethe and Barossa Valley Wine Company, Australian Vintage Limited also produces ready-made cocktail mixes under its Mr Stubbs brand, a range of gins under its Tempus Two brand, and a juice concentrate called Austflavour.

Australian Vintage is a strong company with some fabulous brands which will be just right for India – so long as the thinking and strategy is right.

INTO INDIA wishes them every success.

Austrade steps up promotion of Australia as an education destination

During 2022, Austrade stepped up the promotion of Australia as an education destination for young Indians – and has just completed a highly successful month of activity over there.

The India campaign has included:

The Study Australia Showcase in India ran 12-22 September 2022, with an accompanying campaign delivering 69.2 million impressions and attracting 3,420 event registrations. PR activity delivered 275 media articles with a readership of 13 million. The event covered six cities, and involved 26 Australian institutions, Australian Government and all state and territory Study Australia Partnership (SAP) members. Nearly 95% of attendees were satisfied or highly satisfied.
The Study Australia Entrepreneurship Challenge engaged 18 Indian institutions, 36 student teams and 36 academic and industry mentors across four Challenge themes: creative industries, cybersecurity, digital health, circular economy.
Shine with Australia: Discover your Brilliant Future Self (Phase III) ran in-market in India between 19 Sept – 17 Oct, resulting in a 122% increase in leads generated via the Study Australia website Course Search tool over the four-week period prior.

The Department of Education has released year-to-date (YTD) September 2022 international student data. There were 569,204 international students on student visas for September 2022, 1% more than January-September 2021. The top 5 countries account for 59% of international students: China (26%), India (16%), Nepal (9%), Vietnam (4%) and Colombia (3%).

There were 669,958 enrolments between January-September 2022, composed of 52% higher education (346,451), 36% VET (241,203), 8% ELICOS (52,650), 3% non-award (18,516) and 2% schools (11,138). Compared to the January-September 2021 period, enrolments were up for ELICOS (45%) and non-award (46%) but down for higher education (-4%), VET (-7%), and schools (-14%).

What a year! ECTA the radical change in relations between India and Australia

As this year comes to a close, INTO INDIA reflects on the game changer – the Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement.

It surprised us all. Many did not expect it to be signed. Nobody expected it to be so vast in potential impact.

ECTA will save Australian exporters around $2 billion a year in tariffs, while consumers and business will save around $500 million in tariffs on imports of finished goods, and inputs to our manufacturing sector.

The tariff commitments provided by India in the agreement will open up access for Australia’s exporters of products including critical minerals, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, lentils, seafood, sheepmeat, horticulture and wine.  

Australian service suppliers will benefit from full or partial access across more than 85 Indian services sectors and subsectors. Australian suppliers across 31 sectors and subsectors will be guaranteed the highest standard of treatment that India grants to any future free trade agreement partner. 

Australian services sectors to benefit include higher education and adult education, as well as business services such as tax, architecture and urban planning.

ECTA will support tourism and workforce needs in regional Australia by making 1000 Work and Holiday Program places available to young adventurous Indians. It maintains opportunities for Indian students graduating in Australia to undertake post-study work, with a bonus year of stay for high-performing STEM graduates.

Really looking forward to 2023!

Reade more here…

Trade deal to kicks off Dec 29th saving Aussie exporters to India $2b a year in tariffs

India’s YOUTH BOOM will reshape the world

These are the priorities of Indian Gen Z and Millennials.

Most of the world’s young people live in India.

And India next month becomes the most populous nation on earth, passing China.

India’s YOUTH BOOM looks like this:

440 million Millennials (born between 1981 and 1996)

375 million Gen Z (born between 1997 and 2012)

There are two things we need to know about these generations.

First, they are hard working and earning better than their elders. A high percentage of them have a second job.

Second, they are big spenders, so their capacity to shape and influence us all is enormous.

So, getting your product or service into India right now would make great business sense.

And countries, like Australia, are busy building closer political and strategic ties with India. Makes sense – it will be the economic (and therefore cultural etc) driver of the future.

Time for Australian business and education to find a way to increase trade with India

Dr Ashok Sharma has written about the increasingly close relations of India and Australia – for example, we are now the number 2 education market behind the USA and just ahead of the UK. Dr Sharma pointed to the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and the New Education Policy which should “bring the current education partnership to the next level”.

Indian Foreign Minister’s Visit to Australia Strengthens Strategic Convergence, Trust, and Continuity in the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership

But what about other areas of trade?

We know that the increasing activity in education has many spin offs – increased tourism, professional exchanges and more.

Education might be the “trade flagship” that drags other industries into the trade mix.

But we cannot be sure.

It is time for a new national conversation about Australia-India trade, with a close examination on what blockages might exist and what steps would increase two-way trade.

India’s External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar (pictured with Acting Prime Minister Richard Marles) came to Australia in October for the annual Foreign Ministers’ Framework Dialogue – where these matters were discussed.

The two foreign ministers discussed “accelerating and deepening economic ties, including through our Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement.”

Sounds good.

But what is next?

Can the Australian Trade Minister, the Hon Don Farrell, bring business and education at all levels together in a national dialogue?

Remember – India is not just the second most populous nation on earth, it is also the YOUNGEST – which makes it the global growth centre. We cannot afford to miss this opportunity.

We have to find a way.

DEAKIN UNIVERSITY HUBS – the new way in India

Deakin University set to lead in new education era for India – at JGU are Professor Iain Martin, VC, Deakin, and Ravneet Pahwa, VP and CEO South Asia

These “HUBS” are a great innovation by Deakin University – giving it a great advantage in the Indian era of the New Education Policy.

Deakin Vice-Chancellor Professor Iain Martin visiting New Delhi, India, announcing the launch of partner-institutions so that students can commence the first part of their studies in their home country.

“I am excited to be back in India and it couldn’t have been for a better occasion than the launch of the DEAKIN UNIVERSITY HUBS at OP Jindal Global University, Symbiosis International University and Chitkara University,” said Professor Martin.

Here is why this is a big idea!

Indian students can now commence the first part of their studies with a Deakin partner institution in India and then transfer to a Deakin campus in Australia for the second part of their educational journey.

But that’s just the early stage of the HUBS.

“These hubs will provide valuable opportunities for growth, student mobility and joint research. They will promote enhanced collaboration between Indian institutes and Deakin, leading to academic and research excellence that will be highly beneficial for both countries,” said Professor Martin.

It gets better!

Deakin has established similar hubs with corporates – Infosys, TCS and more.

Deakin was the first international university to establish its presence in India in 1994.

CONGRATULATIONS to Ravneet Pawha, Vice-President (Global Alliances) and CEO (South Asia) at Deakin and the whole Deakin team in India.

Deakin is a role model in how to do business in India:

Establish a presence for the long haul
Be visible in India
Develop relationships over time
As India further liberalises, build stronger engagement
Use Indians to head up your presence in India
Ensure your leadership (V-C) is a regular visitor to India

India and China – a simple comparison

The Indian economy is expected to grow by 7.3% in the current fiscal year, which ends in March.

China is expected to grow by 2%.

Population of China is 1.4 billion (approx), ageing and declining.

Population of India is 1.4 billion (approx), young and growing.

Indian economy is driven by supplying local demand as the youthful population and middle class growth increase demand.

Chinese economic growth has largely been driven by making and exporting.

India as a domestic demand-driven economy – is less sensitive to global downturns.

China is an export driven economy – highly sensitive to global downturns.

And we have not even got onto world’s largest democracy, innovative driven, attracting and welcoming western investment and more…

Compare the two – what do you think?