In my upcoming book ‘The India-U.S. Partnership: $1 Trillion By 2030’, I suggest that the United States and India should be thinking about economic integration levels that befits the world’s second and third largest economies. It is simply not enough to try and achieve $500 billion in bilateral trade by 2030, as many have suggested. By that point, America’s bilateral trade with China may have surpassed $3 trillion, and that with Mexico may have surpassed $1 trillion.
My interviews with 62 senior executives in business, civil society, academia and government in the United States and India confirmed that India remains an economic partner with great potential. But to achieve its potential as a partner of the United States, India will need to implement structural policy reforms, but also heavily invest private funds in institution building, R&D, innovation and entrepreneurship.