India Emerges as Top Global Manufacturing Hub, ASSOCHAM Reports

The industry body ASSOCHAM released a report stating that India is rapidly strengthening its position among the world’s leading manufacturing centres and is the biggest beneficiary of recent shifts in global supply chains. Companies are moving beyond a sole reliance on China, adopting "China+1", near‑shoring and friend‑shoring strategies to make supply chains more resilient.

According to the report, India’s average manufacturing growth rose from 3.44 % in the pre‑pandemic period (2016‑19) to 4.15 % projected for 2022‑25, outpacing the global average by about two percentage points. The country now joins the United States, France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom as economies that have exceeded the global manufacturing growth rate, while before the pandemic only China, Mexico and Russia had done so. ASSOCHAM chair Nirmal K. Minda said that the sector’s progress reflects government reforms, stronger domestic demand, improved infrastructure and increased foreign investment driven by the "China+1" approach.

The report credits initiatives such as the Production‑Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, industrial corridors and the PM Gati Shakti programme for attracting investment, and recommends further enhancements in logistics, domestic supplier networks, ease of doing business, Industry 4.0 adoption and effective use of free‑trade agreements to cement India’s role as a leading manufacturing hub.