Source: www.kcpw.org

Governor’s Trade Mission to India is Underway

Governor Jon Huntsman is in India this week helping Utah businesses and universities make lucrative connections. The trip comes just a week after Novell announced it’s cutting 200 jobs in Provo and outsourcing them to India. But Governor Huntsman downplays India’s threat to the Utah economy:

“Listen, we’re insourcing a lot more jobs than we’re outsourcing. That’s just the nature of our economy - we’re doing extremely well,” says Huntsman. “I think other people ought to be concerned about outsourcing their jobs to Utah, not India.”

Huntsman says the companies on his current trade mission are not interested in outsourcing, but rather exporting products to India. More than half of the participants on the trip are from Utah universities and colleges hoping to establish student and faculty exchanges. About fifteen of the companies are high-tech, adds Huntsman:

“Including some run by very prominent Indian Americans who reside here and have made our state better because they live here and have created jobs,” says Huntsman. “There’s also a humanitarian component of our trip. We’ll be opening a school to provide education to some underserved kids.”

While in India, Huntsman will also speak to a large group of faculty and students at Pune University. The group is expected to return to Utah on November 4th. Governor Huntsman has led similar trade missions to China, Mexico and Canada.

Source: www.thehindubusinessline.com

Terming apprehensions about job losses due to IT outsourcing to India as unfounded, the Finance Minister, Mr P Chidambaram has asked Norwegian IT companies to take advantage of offshoring.

“IT outsourcing to India could improve Norwegian industries’ competitiveness and their capacity to adapt to ongoing global trends,” Mr Chidambaram said at a seminar on IT in Oslo yesterday.

India has been Norway’s first source of skilled professionals for the past one year, he said. He said contrary to apprehensions, more jobs have been created as a result of IT outsourcing.

During the seminar, acquisition of Bangalore-based IT company SPAN by Norway’s largest IT company EDB Business Partners ASA, was announced. This is the largest ever IT acquisition by Norwegian IT company in Asia involving over 500 IT professionals worki ng with SPAN, according to an official release here today.