Despite the bureaucracy being seen as problematic and the business environment continuing to be challenging, Swedish companies are bullish about their prospects in India, a survey released on Friday shows.

Results of the sixth Business Climate Survey, questions for which were sent out to 157 Swedish companies operating here at the end of September, shows that 72 per cent of the responding companies felt that an Indian economic slowdown will be the biggest risk for their business in the country.

This is a significant jump from last year’s survey which saw 42 per cent of the responding companies saying an Indian economic slowdown was the biggest risk for their businesses in India.

Red tape

Seventy per cent of the respondents, or seven out of 10 companies, in this year’s survey agreed that bureaucracy was problematic for their operations and growth.

The survey results add that 17 per cent of the respondents felt that a major part of their senior management’s time was spent on dealing with Government authorities about applications relating to the law and regulations.

Besides 28 per cent of the respondents listed bureaucracy to be the biggest risk facing their business here.

Prospects bright

But despite these impediments, eight out of 10 companies in the survey said that they will increase their operational activities in India with one out of two responding companies adding that they will increase investments here by 10 per cent or more compared to last year.

The survey is conducted annually by the Swedish Chamber of Commerce in India and aims to understand the confidence that Swedish companies here have in doing business in India.

The results help it in identifying the obstacles and ways to overcome them.

ashwini.phadnis@thehindu.co.in

Related Topics