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Indian companies are becoming an increasingly important source of jobs in the UK, employing over 1 lakh people, and many have growth rates above 10 per cent, a new research has found.
In a joint report Grant Thornton and the Confederation of Indian Industry identified over 700 Indian-owned businesses in the UK, 12 of which employ at least 1,000 people each. Tata Group, which represents the bulk, employs just under 64,000 people across England, mostly within Tata Steel, which accounts for just over half that number. Other major employers include the Wadia Group, Essar Energy, and outsourcer Firstsource Solutions.
The report also noted many of the firms report high levels of growth despite Britain’s own low growth (GDP in the UK is expected to grow by 2.7 percent this year, according to the official forecasts). The 41 fastest growing businesses – which include big companies but mainly small and medium sized businesses – had growth rates of over 10 percent in 2013, while 26 companies experienced over 20 percent growth. Over half of those fastest growing 41 were businesses that had been started from scratch rather than being acquisitions.
“The growth rates are quite impressive when you consider the benign economic climate in the UK,” said Anuj Chande, head of Grant Thornton’s South Asia group.
While the majority of the fastest growing firms worked in the pharmaceutical sector, chemicals, technology and telecom also saw high rates of growth. “The sectors have remained enduringly strong for outward looking Indian enterprises attracted to UK known-how, technology and market positioning,” noted the report.
Much of the growth appears to be happening outside London, with just under 30 percent of the fastest growing companies based in the capital. “These patterns are encouraging signs that other UK regions have successfully established themselves as centres of expertise able to attract inward investment.”
Chande said with economic growth picking up in the UK, there was likely to be “a reversion to pre-2008 levels of interest among Indian corporates in the UK.”
“We are already seeing increased activity,” he said, adding he had had a couple of inquiries in the last few days from Indian firms looking to invest in the UK.
Much of the interest was likely to come from those hoping to transfer skills and technology back to India, he said.
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