London Sees India As Top Priority For FDI

India is poised to be the number one source market in terms of foreign direct investment (FDI) for London. With an estimated GBP 27 billion extra tax revenue, the UK's capital city has unveiled an ambitious new Growth Plan' in order to fund vital public services in London and across the country, with an estimated GBP 27 billion extra tax revenue. India tops as its choice for FDI.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has unveiled the plan recently. Growth agency London & Partners accompanied. The aim is to restore productivity growth to an average of 2 per cent a year in the next decade. India’s continuation with the growth curve for the last three years led to overtaking the US as London's single-largest FDI source market in 2022-23 and in 2023-24.

“Foreign direct investment from India has been the fastest growing and has been our number one market for the last two years”— Laura Citron, CEO of London & Partners, was quoted to have said in media. 

“So, it's Indian tech companies setting up operations in London. Equally, if we look at it as a student market, post-Brexit, India has really rapidly grown as a student market. It's now the number two source market for London after China. It's also a fast-growing tourism market for London; India is just a really critical, top market for London,” Laura added.

According to data, London hosted 38,625 Indian students, reflecting a steep growth curve over the past 10 years with the country's share of all international students in London increasing from under 5 per cent to over 20 per cent.

Commenting on it, Mark Hertlien, Head of Global Engagement at City St George's University and Chair of the International Network at London Higher said as--“It is positive that London's quantity of Indian students has increased in the past decade, with Indian students now accounting for over 20 per cent of international students enrolled at a London university.”

“At City St George's, the number of Indian students joining us has doubled over recent years. They become lifelong ambassadors of our capital city and create lasting and powerful bridges between our nations” he added.