Investment climate may improve moderately in FY 2013: Survey

NEW DELHI: Majority of corporates expect investment climate to improve moderately in the next fiscal amid economic slowdown in western economies, a survey has said.

Amidst the present environment of uncertainty in the advanced economies, Indian industry stands positive in its investment outlook for 2013-14, it said.

"About 83 per cent corporates felt that investment environment may improve moderately during the next fiscal," the survey by PHD Chamber said.

The chamber said it has surveyed 277 executives of companies -- small, medium and large -- across the country.

Half of the respondents were of the view that global economic slowdown would subside by end of 2015, while 33 per cent felt that the crisis would subdue by end of 2017.

However, the remaining 17 per cent of surveyed corporates were uncertain of the timeframe, it said.

Further, the study said, a large share of the respondents across the industry felt that the trend of corporate investments would remain the same whereas the remaining expected it to improve moderately.

However, given the steady unveiling of reform measures by the government and its speedy implementation, a small fraction of industrialists feel that corporate investments had the potential to improve sharply during the next financial year.

"We look forward to a dynamic 2013-14 as effective policy interventions and reforms would contribute to the country's GDP which is likely to be in the range of 6-7.5 per cent in next fiscal," PHD Chamber President Suman Jyoti Khaitan said.

The recent reforms unveiled by the government have positively impacted investment sentiment and paved the way for more investments by corporates going forward, he said.

The economy registered a growth of 5.3 per cent in the quarter ended September and the growth was 5.5 per cent in the June quarter this year.

The survey said the cost of doing business forms an important component of industrial production. Majority of surveyed people said that the prices of raw-material would increase in the next year.

It observed that 40 per cent respondents felt FDI inflows would increase marginally, 30 per cent opined that foreign investment inflows would remain same and 25 per cent said that these inflows would decline.

But only 5 per cent corporates felt that FDI inflows would increase sharply.