U.S. firms seeking rupee loans from Indian banks will encounter high interest rates. A clearance from the Reserve Bank of India is still required for all foreign loans. India's industrial policy actively promotes foreign investment as indispensable to its international competitiveness. A 5-year tax holiday is extended to enterprises engaged in the development of infrastructure facilities. India has a fairly liberal plant location policy.
Indian law offers rigorous protection for copyrighted material.
Investors, foreign and domestic, still complain that the regulatory system allows far too much leeway for bureaucratic discretion. India has gradually reduced its high import tariffs, de-licensed and liberalized imports including those of capital goods. Borrowers are free to seek loans from any internationally recognized source, i.e. banks, export credit agencies, equipment suppliers, foreign banks, collaborators, etc. U.S. firms need to be patient, especially in the infrastructure sector. Faster administrative actions for implementation of power projects are likely in the future.