PM Modi meets prominent Australian business leaders in Sydney; invites new business in India

Prime Minister Narendra Modi began his Australian visit in Sydney by meeting executives of top multinational companies in the country. On Tuesday PM met Paul Schroder, Chief Executive Officer of AustralianSuper, a superannuation fund headquartered in Melbourne, Victoria.

Prime Minister highlighted India’s credentials as one of the most preferred major economies for foreign investments in the world and invited AustralianSuper to partner with India. Schroder is responsible for the leadership and strategic development of the fund and the provision of advice to the board.

After his meeting with PM Modi, Schroder said, “Ours was the most impressive meeting. The Prime Minister is the most impressive person who understands business and who is very encouraging as well.”
“The Prime Minister talked about his dreams for India and is really ethic which is a very powerful message,” he added, “AustralianSuper does invest in India of course and in particular in the Indian infrastructure fund and we have had a very good experience investing in India.”

Prime Minister Modi highlighted India’s credentials as one of the most preferred major economies for foreign investments in the world and invited AustralianSuper to partner with India, according to a statement from the ministry of external affairs.

Prime Minister Modi is on a three-day visit to the country to attend a bilateral meeting with his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese. Modi arrived in Sydney on Monday and was welcomed by Australian High Commissioner to India Barry O’Farrell and other officials. He was greeted by the members of the Indian diaspora who chanted “Bharat Mata Ki Jai” and ‘Vande Mataram’.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday also met the executive chairman of Fortescue Future Industries, an Australia-based green energy and technology firm.
John Andrew Henry Forrest AO, nicknamed Twiggy, is is best known as the former CEO (and current non-executive chairman) of Fortescue Metals Group (FMG) and has other interests in the mining industry and in cattle stations.

Prime Minister Modi also interacted with Gina Rinehart, Executive Chairman of Hancock Prospecting. Georgina Hope Rinehart AO is an Australian billionaire mining magnate and businesswoman. Rinehart is the Executive Chairman of Hancock Prospecting, a privately owned mineral exploration and extraction company founded by her father, Lang Hancock.

Meanwhile, at the bilateral meeting to be held between PM Modi and Australian PM Anthony Albanese later this afternoon, the leaders will discuss trade and investment, including efforts to boost trade between the two countries through a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement and work to strengthen people-to-people links, renewable energy, and defence and security cooperation, said the official statement released by the Australian government.

In an exclusive interview with ‘The Australian’ newspaper, PM Modi said that he wants to elevate relations with Australia to the “next level,” which would entail deeper defence ties to support the creation of an “open and free” Indo-Pacific.

“The Indo-Pacific faces a number of challenges such as climate change, natural disasters, terrorism, security of the sea lanes of communication, piracy, illegal fishing among others,” PM Modi told Cameron Stewart in an exclusive interview.

Calling his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese a “dear friend,” Prime Minister Modi said that the bilateral relationship between New Delhi and Canberra was being nourished by the fast-growing Indian diaspora residing there.

“Our people-to-people contacts remain a strong pillar of our partnership. The Indian diaspora in Australia has increased over the past years,” PM Modi said.

“We have progressed significantly in the areas of defence, security. investment, education, water, climate change and renewable energy, sports, science, health, culture, among others” Prime Minister Modi told ‘The Australian’ newspaper.

Last year, on December 29, India and Australia implemented an economic cooperation and trade agreement (ECTA).

Notably, India-Australia bilateral trade exceeded USD 31 billion last financial year.
Before emplaning for Australia, PM Modi visited Papua New Guinea where he co-chaired the third summit of the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) jointly with his counterpart James Marape.