It is reported that foreign direct investment by Indian firms more than doubled in the fiscal year that ended in March to USD 44 billion. At the same time, inbound FDI fell by a quarter to USD 19.4 billion, with planned multibillion dollar investments by South Korean steelmaker POSCO and London listed Vedanta Resources plagued by delays.

Within India, investment was flat on an annual basis in January to March after growing 7.8% in the previous quarter.

With an economy growing around 8% a year, 1.2 billion people and unmet demand for everything from housing, roads and power to food and consumer goods, India is hungry for capital. Conditions on the ground, however, can make it hard to put money to work.

As per report foreign portfolio investors have put a net USD 494 million into Indian stocks in 2011, well off the record pace of last year, which ended with USD 29.3 billion in net fund inflows. Few questions India’s attractiveness as a long term bet.

The overseas investment push by Indian companies, often seen as the assertiveness of a rising power, is increasingly spurred by difficulty finding attractive opportunities in Asia’s third largest economy.

(Sourced from Reuters)