India’s Decade Of Transformation

Last week India released its official growth numbers for the fourth quarter of 2022-23. It was a surprise on the upside. As a result, growth in the last fiscal year was 7.2%, compared to 7% estimated earlier. Coincidentally, in the same week, two global investment banks, Morgan Stanley and Amundi, published independent reports saying that the last decade, coinciding with the tenure of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) was the most transformative ever for the Indian economy. According to them, this has set the stage for India realizing the growth potential—that everyone has long believed in. In its report titled ‘How India Has Transformed in Less than a Decade’, Morgan Stanley said, “This India is different from what it was in 2013. In a short span of 10 years, India has gained positions in the world order with significant positive consequences for the macro and market outlook.” Similarly, Amundi Institute, the research arm of Amundi, the European asset manager, in its report, titled, ‘Building bridges to India’s future investment opportunities’, argued: “India’s macro fundamentals are well positioned for a multi-year improvement in economic output and earnings.”
To unpack all of this we spoke to Saugata Bhattacharya, Chief Economist, Axis Bank.