11 July,2009 12:51 PM IST | | PTI
Notwithstanding the uncertainty surrounding the global economic recovery, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday said India should be able to sustain a growth rate of 8 to 9 per cent GDP growth.
He said he was confident that India would come out of this crisis stronger but the road ahead was also going to be difficult to traverse.
"It is not going to be easy but I am convinced that India's savings rate, which is as high as 35 per cent with a normal capital output ratio of 4:1, we should be able to sustain, with a little bit effort, a growth rate of about 8 to 9 per cent notwithstanding the difficulties on the international front," Sing told reporters accompanying him on his way back home from a four-day visit to Italy.
Against the backdrop of the world attempting a recovery from the recession caused by the financial crisis in the heart of the developed world, he said he had discussions with the leaders of G-8 and G-5, Egypt and African countries.
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"After our discussions, it is my sense that while there are some signs of recovery, the world economy is still a long way from recovering the earlier growth momentum and there must be questions whether that will soon be possible for the global economy," he said.
The Prime Minister said he was returning home convinced that India must continue to strengthen steps at home to regain the 8 to 10 per cent growth path.
The Prime Minister said international environment would not be as supportive as before for some time to come. "I am, however, confident that our domestic economic strengths will enable us to return to our earlier path of rapid and inclusive growth."
He said in his statement in the G-8, G-5 summit he did mention that all available indicators for 2009 point to a deceleration in the US economy in the European Union economies and, therefore, one can say that the global environment for the development of the countries of the third world has undergone a sharp deterioration.
Singh noted that India's exports have suffered, capital flows from abroad have declined and international bank lending to the developing countries has declined.
"Therefore the challenge before us is to sustain and revive the growth momentum which we have built up in the last five years notwithstanding the deterioration in the international environment for development," he said.
