India’s Stimulus Plan Falls Short on Vision
The government's measures to revive growth lack a cohesive strategy to grab the country's biggest opportunity: exports.
In Thailand’s rear-view mirror.
Photographer: Udit Kulshrestha/Bloomberg
India is belatedly acknowledging that something’s gone wrong with what was once billed as the world’s fastest-growing economy. That’s the good news. The bad news is that New Delhi still doesn’t have a cohesive strategy to reverse the slowdown.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman did offer a stimulus package on Friday. The highlight was the rollback of a tax surcharge on overseas investors that she herself had imposed in July’s budget. It’s a welcome concession, though there’s no logic in giving global banks a break on derivatives they trade in India while denying the same tax benefit to local hedge funds.