Target India and China: Obama tells corporate America

Lalit K Jha

Washington, Feb 8 (PTI) US President Barack Obama today asked American business leaders to aggressively pursue the huge middle class in India and China to increase their export, thus create hundreds and thousands of jobs in the country.

"The truth is, as countries like China and India grow and develop larger middle classes, it''s profitable for global companies to aggressively pursue these markets and, at times, to set up facilities in these countries," Obama said in his address to the US Chamber of Commerce.

Obama said with the march of technology over the last few decades, the competition for jobs and businesses has grown fierce.

"The globalisation of our economy means that businesses can now open up shop, employ workers and produce their goods wherever there is internet connection," he said.

The United States needs an economy that''s based not on what it consume and borrow from other nations, but what Americans make and sell around the world.

"We need to make America the best place on earth to do business," he noted.

"As a government, we will help lay the foundation for you to grow and innovate. We will upgrade our transportation and communications networks so you can move goods and information more quickly and cheaply.

"We will invest in education so that you can hire the most skilled, talented workers in the world. And we''ll knock down barriers that make it harder for you to compete, from the tax code to the regulatory system," he said.

At the same time, Obama reminded the American corporate leadership of their corporate and social responsibilities.

"But as we work with you to make America a better place to do business, ask yourselves what you can do for America. Ask yourselves what you can do to hire American workers, to support the American economy, and to invest in this nation.

"That''s what I want to talk about today � the responsibilities we all have to secure the future we all share. As a country, we have a responsibility to encourage American innovation," he said.

Emphasising on exports, Obama said this means seeking new opportunities and opening new markets for goods.

"I''ll go anywhere to be a booster for American businesses, American workers, and American products. We recently signed export deals with India and China that will support more than 250,000 jobs here in the United States," he said.

"We finalised a trade agreement with South Korea that will support at least 70,000 American jobs � a deal that has unprecedented support from business and labor; Democrats and Republicans. That''s the kind of deal I''ll be looking for as we pursue trade agreements with Panama and Columbia and work to bring Russia into the international trading system," Obama said.

http://in.news.yahoo.com/target-india-china-obama-tells-corporate-america-20110207-113000-672.html

China to back Pakistan for civil nuclear deal with US

ISLAMABAD, April 9 (IANS): China will back Pakistan for a civil nuclear deal with the US at an upcoming summit in Washington, a media report said on Thursday, citing sources privy to a special meeting of the parliamentary committee on national security.

China's support on the issue was discussed on Wednesday at the special parliamentary committee meeting chaired by Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, Daily Times reported. The committee was assured that Pakistan will actively pursue its case for a civil nuclear deal with the US during Gilani's upcoming visit to the US.

Sources said the Pakistani ambassador to China - who participated in preliminary deliberations on the nuclear summit in Washington - briefed the committee on the objectives of the summit and Pakistan's preparations to positively contribute to the deliberations.

Meanwhile, in a press statement after the meetings, Gilani reiterated his government's commitment to take all parliamentary parties into confidence over all national policies, particularly those on defence, Kashmir and the country's nuclear programme. He said Pakistan was aware of its responsibilities as a nuclear state.

Pakistan had taken effective steps for nuclear safety, security and non-proliferation through "extensive legislative and a regulatory and administrative framework", Gilani said at the meeting.

Gilani, who is also the National Command Authority chairman, said his government fully accepted the responsibility of nuclear security. He said nuclear power generation offered viable solutions for energy security and in addressing the challenge of climate change.

He highlighted that Pakistan had more than 35 years of experience in operating nuclear power plants successfully.

He said socio-economic development hinged on the ability to meet rapidly expanding energy requirements. "We need to explore all options to ensure a reliable energy mix, and civil nuclear power generation is, therefore, an essential part of our national energy security strategy."

He said the government considered nuclear safety, security and safeguards "vehicles to facilitate international civil nuclear cooperation".

Gilani said the objectives of nuclear non-proliferation could only be served through a non-discriminatory paradigm for international cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy.

Representatives of all political parties assured Gilani their complete support, and expressed confidence that he would successfully put across Pakistan's viewpoint.

The members of the committee also praised the preparations made by Pakistani representatives for the summit. The special meeting was also attended by General Tariq Majid, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, and the foreign secretary.

After China, India to buy IMF bonds worth $10 billion

Toeing the line of other BRIC countries, India today announced that it will buy bonds worth $10 billion from the International Monetary Fund. This was announced by finance minister Pranab Mukherjee who is attending the G-20 finance ministers' meet in London. China yesterday committed to buy bonds worth $50 billion from the IMF and there have been talks that Russia and Brazil may do the same.

After the IMF bailed out India from one of its worst ever economic crisis in the 1990s, this comes as a kind of role reversal where the government would contribute to the kitty of the multi-lateral institution to revive the world economy and provide funds to needy developing nations. "However, this participation in IMF's debt would not load India and not further stretch its resources," an official statement said on Friday. The amount of $10 billion is in proportion to India's current quota share at the IMF.

A decision to raise IMF's lendable resources to $500 billion through bilateral financing and the New Arrangements to Borrow (NAB) was taken at the G-20 summit held at London in April 2009. India's announcement comes in the backdrop of the recent decision of the IMF announcing a framework for the issuance of notes to the official sector. The design of these Notes will allow investments to be treated as international reserves.

This would enable the Reserve Bank of India to invest a portion of its foreign exchange reserves in these financial instruments. The decision will bring India in the forefront as a significant partner in the global economic and financial framework.

"India believes that the IMF is a quota-based institution and raising resources through bilateral financing and the expansion of the NAB are not a substitute for quota resources, but a temporary bridge to a quota increase. We fully expect that the next general quota review, which is now agreed to be concluded by January 2011, will result in the long overdue substantial re-balancing of quota and voting power in favour of emerging market economies and developing countries," the official statement said.

ENS Economic Bureau