India’s growing economic importance on the global map has once again been highlighted with an increasing number of famous bulge bracket banks making their presence felt in the Indian financial scenario. After Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs is now ready to strike out on its own with an investment of close to US$ 1 bn in India.

A bulge bracket bank is a firm which straddles the complete range of financial services including investment banking, securities trading and investment management across global markets, viz. Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley. Last year Merrill Lynch bought a majority stake in DSP Merrill Lynch. Most of these firms are looking at setting up their full service investment banking operations in the country.

According to Brooks Entwistle, CEO, Goldman Sachs (India), “We plan and hope to invest in the first phase $1bn into investment banking, securities business, asset management and our other principal business which includes private equity, public markets investments, real estate and the special situation group…….Our clients globally wanted us to have a full service unit in India. Likewise, our Indian clients also wanted us to start operations.

Currently, Goldman Sachs only has a representative office in the country and has applied for various licenses. It is also looking at both internal and external personnel to head its different business, though it already has people in India in the principal business.

India has moved one place up to emerge as the world's 29th largest exporter of goods but jumped seven ranks to become the 17th largest importer in global trade during 2005, according to statistics released by WTO (World Trade Organization).

In services, however, India's rank is far up in the list. The country is now the world's tenth largest importer and exporter of commercial services, compared to 15th and 16th largest respectively in 2004, as per the WTO's (World Trade Organization) World Trade Report 2005 released in Geneva.

The country's merchandise exports last year grew 19 per cent to US$ 89.8 bn while market share rose by 0.1 per cent to 0.9 per cent of global exports.

But imports soared by 35 per cent - largely on the back of rising oil import Bill - to US$ 131.6 bn and the country's share in global imports stood at 1.2 per cent.

In services, while exports stood at US$ 67.6 bn, imports were marginally lower at US$ 67.4 bn. The country's share in global services exports and imports was almost equal at 2.8 per cent and 2.9 per cent respectively.

In merchandise goods, Germany has retained its place as the largest exporter with US$ 970.7 bn, followed by the US at US$ 904.3 bn, China at US$ 762 bn, Japan at US$ 595.8 bn and France at US$ 459.2 bn.

In imports, US is on top of the list with US$ 1,732.7 bn, followed by Germany at US$ 774.1 bn, China at US$ 660.1 bn, Japan at US$ 516.1 bn and UK at US$ 501.2 bn.

World's merchandise exports and imports rose by 13 per cent each to US$ 10,393.1 bn and US$ 10,753.1 bn respectively.

In services, the United States, UK, Germany, France and Japan have retained their places in top five importers and exporters.

The US exported services worth US$ 353.3 bn and imported US$ 288.7 bn; UK exported US$ 183.4 bn and imported US$ 150.1 bn; Germany exported US$ 198.6 bn and imported US$ 142.9 bn; France exported US$ 113.7 bn and imported US$ 102.9 bn and Japan exported US$ 135.9 bn worth of services and imported US$ 106.6 bn.

World's total services exports and imports shot up by 11 per cent to US$ 2,415 bn and US$ 2,360 bn.