Billionaire Elon Musk Friday (Jan 18) said that India-US trade ties were "trending positive" as he hosted a group of business leaders from the South Asian nation at his SpaceX Starbase facility in Texas. The Tesla boss added that he was in favour of enhanced economic relations between the two economies.
The group of Indian entrepreneurs was led by India Global Forum (IGF) to mark the group’s expansion into the US this week. The business figures visited SpaceX’s advanced space exploration facilities and also witnessed the successful launch of SpaceX's Starship Flight 7.
Musk's remarks
"Things are trending positive. I'm certainly in favour of lowering trade barriers to increase commerce between the US and India," Musk told the delegation.
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Musk further described India "one of the ancient civilisations and a very great and very complex one". Musk’s interaction with Indian executives largely focused on the role of technology and India's growing role in the global innovation landscape.
Notably, Musk is going to play a major role in US President-elect Donald Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which is aimed at cutting operational costs of government machinery.
Also read: SpaceX's Starship explodes mid-flight, upper stage lost, says company
IGF founder Manoj Ladwa said the meeting highlighted importance of interaction between Indian and global business leaders. As the world's most powerful democracy transitions to a Trump presidency, "meaningful dialogue is more important than ever in these challenging times," he said.
"At India Global Forum, our mission is to bring together global leaders and innovators to tackle the defining challenges of our time... I believe India's rise presents limitless opportunities, and this meeting signifies the potential for powerful partnerships," he added.
The Indian delegation
Major Indian business personalities, including Prashant Ruia, Director - Essar Capital; Jay Kotak, Co-Head - Kotak811; Ritesh Agarwal, Founder & Group CEO - OYO; Kalyan Raman, CEO - Flipkart; Aryaman Birla, Director - Aditya Birla Management Corporation Private Limited; Nilesh Ved, Chairman - Apparel Group; were part of the delegation.
(With inputs from agencies)