Among the large emerging economies, we are the fastest growing economies next only to China and therefore I am confident that money will flow back into India. Investors will find India a safe destination to invest. And this temporary phase should pass. There is no need for pessimism, he said on the sidelines of a Crisil function.
The Indian currency touched a record low of 59.98 to a dollar last week following US Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernankes statement that the US government could slowdown purchase of bonds, depending on economic condition, later this year.
But re-iterating that the statement by Bernanke was completely misunderstood, Chidambaram further said, The rupee is very stable. A large amount of money flowed into India. Between January and May alone, I think a little over $5 billion flowed into India. (But) following Bernankes statement, $5 billion flowed out of India in a matter of two weeks. This is unfortunate.
He also announced that the government will take a call on revising the FDI caps in different sectors in the second or third week of July. A panel led by economic affairs secretary Arvind Mayaram had last week submitted a report calling for a comprehensive overhaul in the foreign investment regime. Besides, other crucial decisions are also expected to be taken in the coming days, the finance minister indicated.