Nokia, Kone, Konecranes and Iceye on the move – Historic trade agreement opens huge opportunities for Finnish companies

At the beginning of the year, an agreement was reached on the trade agreement between the EU and India. It is one of the largest trade agreements in the world. The agreement is not yet valid, as both parties must ratify the agreement.

Visiting Minister of Commerce and Industry of India in Finland Piyush Goyal assesses in an interview with Kauppalehti what the trade agreement means for the business and investment opportunities of Finnish and Indian companies.

Goyal sees the agreement between the European Union and India as a clear message of faith in fair trade rules. He states that the agreement opens up market opportunities in a region that covers almost a quarter of the world’s economy.

“I think it will have a significant impact on the development of both European Union member countries and India,” says Goyal in an interview with Kauppalehti.

He states that the free trade agreement between the EU and India, among other things, facilitates customs processes, lowers the costs of trading and encourages investments.

Complementary strengths

Goyal is quite sure that in the future Finnish companies will invest more in India than before.

He believes that Finnish companies consider India an attractive investment destination and location for manufacturing.

According to Goyal, technology and innovation are clearly Finland’s strengths. He mentions, among other things, quantum computing.

Goyal also sees a lot of potential in the cooperation of startup companies.

India is investing heavily in its startup ecosystem.

“I was very inspired at the time About Slush”, said Goyal.

He has been impressed by how strong the startup community has built around it.

Goyal says that India currently has its own big startup event called Mahakumbh. According to him, Finnish companies have participated in it in the same way as Indian companies participate in Slush.

“Almost all of our first mobile phones were Nokia”

Many Finnish companies are familiar to Indians.

“The first GSM mobile call was made Nokian on the phone. I mentioned today that almost all of our first mobile phones were Nokia. Nokia is still known as one of the key infrastructure providers for mobile networks,” says Goyal.

According to Goyal Wärtsilä is another name that is widely known in India and at the same time he states that Kone’s elevators are in use in buildings across India.

“There are numerous examples of successful cooperation between Finnish companies and Indian companies,” says Goyal.

Lots of skilled workforce

Goyal also points out that there is a lot of young skilled labor in India. He says that India trains about 1.4 million graduates in STEM fields every year, i.e. experts in natural sciences, technology, engineering sciences and mathematics.

The figure can be compared to Finland’s population of 5.5 million.

Goyal believes that many may not realize how fast the Indian economy is growing. India’s economy grew by 7.7 percent last year and growth continues at a rapid pace.

Goyal sees India as the world’s fastest growing major economy.

He estimates that in the future the engines of world growth will increasingly be countries like India and the growing economies of Africa and Latin America.

He believes that India can act as a gateway for Finnish companies to the markets of the so-called global south.

More investments in Finland as well

Goyal believes that Indian companies will invest more in Finland in the future

“If Indian companies are looking for innovations and research and development cooperation, they will greatly benefit from Finland and its excellent innovation ecosystem,” Goyal estimates.

He also sees opportunities for cooperation in education and tourism.

He mentions Mahindra-group. Travel company Holiday Club Resortsin owned by an Indian conglomerate Mahindra & Mahindra its subsidiary Mahindra Holidays & Resortsin through.

A large part of customs leaving

With the trade agreement between the EU and India, the vast majority of customs duties on the trade in goods between the parties are being removed completely after the transition period.

The reduction of customs duties improves the competitiveness of Finnish products in India, for example. In addition, the trade agreement makes it easier for companies to enter the market and make investments as the predictability of the operating environment improves.

At the same time, the access of Indian companies to the EU market will also become easier. Naturally, this can increase competition in some industries. For example, a large number of medicines are currently imported from India to Finland and, more broadly, to Europe.

Although India is the world’s most populous country, there is still considerable growth potential in Finland’s and the entire EU’s trade with India. Currently, only about one percent of Finland’s goods exports go to India. Finland exports to India, among other things, machines and equipment and forest industry technology.

About 60 companies together

An Indian business delegation will also participate in the visit of Indian Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal to Finland.

Goyal says that their purpose is to introduce Finnish companies to India’s strengths.

On Thursday, Goyal’s program included bilateral meetings with the finance minister Riikka Purran (ps) and the Minister of Economic Affairs Sakari Puiston (ps) with.

The historic trade agreement between the EU and India opens up significant opportunities, and many Finnish companies are on the move to promote trade with India.

On Thursday, a Finland–India Business Roundtable event was organized in Helsinki, in which, according to the Confederation of Business and Industry (EK), a total of around 60 companies, around 30 from both countries, participated. Kone, KonecranesNokia and Iceye.

Konecranes Tulokas: Opportunities in all business areas

CEO of Konecranes Marko Tulokas told Kauppalehti that the free trade agreement between India and the EU announced earlier this year is a positive thing for a global company like Konecranes.

“We support the removal of trade barriers, especially considering the trend of recent years towards greater protectionism and customs tariffs,” Tulokas stated.

Konecranes delivered the first mobile harbor crane to India in 1997, and since then the company has expanded its business in India, for example by establishing a production facility in Jejur, Pune.

“All three of our business areas are represented in India, and in addition, we have around 1,000 employees there in support functions, such as IT, in eight locations,” Tulokas says.

Konecranes does not publish country-specific financial information. However, Tulokas states that the company sees opportunities in all its business areas in India.

India’s economy is clearly growing faster than the EU

According to EK’s assessment, the trade agreement would increase Finland’s export opportunities, especially in the technology, energy and environmental sectors.

EK’s director responsible for international trade and trade policy Timo Vuori points out that the local operations of Finnish companies in India are often more significant than trade in goods. According to him, several Finnish companies have production, product development or service centers in India.

Several Finnish companies, such as Kone, Nokia, Wärtsilä, Training and Rootshave been operating in India for a long time. For example, Nokia has several research and development centers in the country, and the company supplies telecom network solutions to Indian operators.

Vuori also notes that India’s economy is clearly growing faster than the EU. At the same time, there has been a lot of discussion in Europe about excessive dependence on China and the possible need to reduce it.

Several Indian companies operate in Finland, and Indian investments have also been made in Finland.

Indian IT companies operating in Finland include, for example TCS, Infosys and Wipro.