The United States is to unveil a special initiative for its companies to vie for a bigger share of India's rapidly growing imports as Washington comes under pressure to curb outsourcing of American jobs to the giant Asian economy.
Thomas Danahue, president of the US Chamber of Commerce, said he would spearhead a fact-finding mission to India next week to discuss the initiative with business and government leaders.
"We'll announce a special initiative to help US companies compete effectively for a larger share of India's rapidly growing imports," Danahue said.
He did not give details but sources told AFP that the multifaceted initiative would include prodding India to take more effective steps for respecting intellectual property rights.
The US Chamber of Commerce is the world's largest business federation, representing three million business entities.
Danahue said he would hold "quiet" discussions with the Indian authorities and companies on the question of counterfeiting and intellectual property.
"There is an extraordinary opportunity for them to take a leadership role in dealing with what is now a, in my view, well over half a trillion dollar problem in this world - that is counterfeiting and stealing of intellectual property," Danahue said.
"Indian companies can be constructive and helpful here because they have a well established rule of law and, by the way, make them all the more competitive with their major competitors if they were to move on that," he explained. Danahue said that as India's economy continued to grow, it was finding out that it was "increasingly a prime target for counterfeiters and intellectual property thieves."
The chamber is also believed to be pushing China on the same front.
Danahue said his Indian trip would focus on the issue of outsourcing.
Some American companies have sourced call center, computer programming and other service jobs to India, creating quite a stir in the United States where creation of jobs is a key issue in the run-up to presidential elections in November.
The United States has been urging India to free up its market to help jumpstart stalled World Trade Organisation talks, but New Delhi has ruled out such a move, saying high farm subsidies by rich nations remain a key obstacle.
Danahue said during his trip from Sunday to April 22 he would also encourage the Indian government and business leaders to do more to open up their market and Indian companies to increase their job-creating opportunities.
"We're seeing lots of economic progress in India: a steady and dramatic reduction in tariffs; comprehensive regulatory reform, the opening up of many sectors, including telecom, pharmaceuticals, IT, insurance and banking, and investment in infrastructure, especially roads and ports," he said.
India's economic growth shot up by more than 10 percent in the last quarter of last year, outstripping even China's expansion rate.
Danahue said US exports to India were "at long last growing at a very quick rate" - by 20 percent last year and he expected the momentum to continue.
US suffered a trade deficit of more than eight billion dollars last year as it chalked up imports worth 13.05 billion dollars from India compared with exports of 4.98 billion dollars.
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