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V. Rishi Kumar

Hyderabad , June 20

THE UK has emerged as one of the most favoured investment destinations for entrepreneurs.

Speaking to Business Line, Mr Mark Dolan, Deputy Director, Inward Investment, UK Trade & Investment, said software and IT sectors continued to be major areas of investment, and that new areas, such as food processing, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals and related research, were emerging as focus sectors.

On a visit to Hyderabad to interact with industrialists as a part of the UK Trade and Investment Mission, Mr Dolan said the UK had 49 uninterrupted quarters of economic growth and its research and development spend works out to about 5.5 per cent of the world investment on R&D, even though its population was barely 1 per cent.

This augurs well for research collaborations between India and the UK, particularly in areas of biotechnology and pharmaceuticals, and stem cell research, where Britain has made significant strides.

Speaking on higher education, Mr Dolan said there was scope for greater partnership between universities and entrepreneurs in the two countries. About 15,500 Indians are studying in the UK, while there are about 17,000 in the US, which is a much larger country. "We are expanding the UK Trade Invest in India to various centres in Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai and believe there is opportunity in a city such as Pune. There is potential to be tapped," he said.

"The Indian food market in the UK is estimated at £1 billion already and this reflects the potential for the market there for processed food as well. The European Union (EU), which has a population of about 500 million, adds to the scale of opportunity. The `made in the UK' tag lends the product additional brand value," Mr Dolan said.

Indian music and fashion have emerged as new areas. About 40 per cent of Indian overseas investment is in the EU, of this 60 per cent is in the UK, Mr Dolan said.

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