US, India relations bloom, but hurdles exists

Iran pipeline, nuclear proliferation are a few hurdles that could stall progress between the countries, leaders said at the WEF.

The relationship between the United States and India is blossoming, but a proposed pipeline with Iran, nuclear proliferation and bureaucracy are just a few of the hurdles that could stall its progress, leaders have said at the World Economic Forum.

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US trade with India is one-tenth that of China, a point of contention at this year's annual meeting in Davos, where China has touted its massive market possibilities, and India -- which sent pashmina shawls and iPod shuffles to hotel guests at this Ski resort -- has been showing off its democracy.

Although India's software exports were almost doubling each year, and outsourcing exports were expected to surpass $22 billion in the fiscal year ending in March, both sides agreed Indian bureaucracy -- a holdover of British colonialism -- was a hindrance.

"We should be seeing numbers that are three or four times larger for the type of trade between our two countries," said Josette Shiner, US Undersecretary for Economic, Business and Agricultural Affairs, remarking on India's 6-7 per cent growth rate, compared to China's 9 per cent.