Market Spotlight on India

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India has long fascinated me. Aside from the fact that I love the cuisine, I have been fortunate to have some close Indian friends who were very generous in sharing their culture, celebrations, and homes. Growing up in the Bay Area (Silicon Valley), my exposure to talented Indian engineers started in the 1990s. It would still be a couple of decades before India would become a hotspot for call centers and other “soft” (non-manufacturing) businesses, like PCB and IC design. A lack of infrastructure has always been India’s greatest challenge, making transportation logistics almost untenable. So, it is with great interest that I watch the Indian market grow to embrace hardware and the semiconductor supply chain.

I recently attended a market discussion on India’s massive expansion and growth potential aptly titled the “Indian Semiconductor Market and Opportunities,” in which Dr. K. Srikar Reddy of the Consulate General of India, provided a short list of impressive facts about India’s burgeoning electronics industry.

• The Indian economy is the fastest growing economy in the world, poised to be the third largest global economy by 2027. 
• It is currently at $155 billion and is expected to become a $1 trillion digital economy in FY 2026.
• 35% of all chips designed are created in India by Indian designers. 
• With already over 450 companies that support the semiconductor supply chain established in the country, semiconductor fab Micron recently announced an investment of $825 million in India over two phases to build a fab assembly and test facility. 
• Making a strong showing in the commercial electronics market, they are also the second largest manufacturer of mobile phones behind China. 
• And last, but definitely not least, the mean age of the Indian population is 29, versus 38 in the United States. They do have some stringent environmental regulations that have come online, but government incentives for investment is great. The Indian market for global electronics is hot.

Further evidence of India’s growth in the tradeshow circuit. This year, both IPC India and SMTAI are taking part in Southeast Asia’s premier show, Integrated Electronics Manufacturing and Interconnection, in Bengaluru, India, and SEMI is holding its first SEMICON India show this September. With a tremendous amount of support by India’s government to those looking to invest in the country, I can only imagine that long-lamented issues that have made India difficult to expand into are finally being addressed. I will continue to be an avid observer as it all unfolds. For those of you actively engaged in the market or looking to expand there, I would love to hear more, so do not hesitate to drop me a line at marcy@iconnect007.com.