Indian IT exports, including software services and products are
projected to grow 12-14 percent in the ensuing fiscal (2015-16), the industry's
representative body Nasscom said on February 11. "IT exports will grow
12-14 percent to reach $110-112 billion and domestic market by 15-17 percent to
touch $55-57 billion in next fiscal (FY 2016)," National Association of
Software and Services Companies (Nasscom) said on the margins of its leadership
forum in Mumbai. The IT-BPM (business process management) industry had a robust
growth this fiscal (2014-15), with aggregate revenues expected to be $146
billion, including $99 billion from software exports, registering 13.1 percent
annual growth in constant currency and 12.3 percent in reported currency.
"We expect the industry to add $20 billion in FY 2016 to the overall
revenues of $146 billion in FY 2015, Nasscom president R. Chandrashekhar said
on the occasion. Exports to the US,
the largest market grew above industry average (60 percent), aided by an
economic revival and higher technology adoption, while demand from Europe remained strong during the first half of the
fiscal, but softened during the second half due to currency movements and
economic challenges. Fuelled by e-commerce business, the domestic market is
expected to grow 14 percent this fiscal (FY 2015) to $47 billion. "The
current fiscal brought in overall optimism for the industry and is expected to
meet guidance for the year in constant currency," Chandrashekhar pointed
out. The engineering and research and development (R&D) services segment
witnessed the fastest growth at 13.2 percent, driven by higher value-added
solutions from vendors and expansion of the GIC (global in-house centre)
landscape. "Digital solutions around SMAC (social, media, analytics and
cloud services), upgrading legacy systems to be SMAC-enabled, greater demand
for AERP, CRM, mobility and user experience technologies is driving growth in
IT services," Chandrashekhar noted. Digital solutions accounted for 12-14
percent of the industry revenues. The industry also evolved during the year and
prioritised on enhancing efficiency, enabling transformation and agility and
partnering for digital initiatives. "Infrastructure outsourcing and
software testing segment also outpaced the industry growth rate. The BPM sector
is being driven by greater automation, expanding omni-channel presence,
application of analytics across the value chain, Chandrashekhar said. Nasscom
also revealed that digitisation, internet of things, agile entrepreneurial
ecosystem and improving business environment were the highlights of the
industry over the year. "The year also witnessed hyper-growth in the
start-up and product landscape and India ranked as the fourth largest
star tup hub in the world, with over 3,100 startups across the country,"
the former telecom secretary asserted. Manufacturing, utilities and retail
growth remained strong as clients increased discretionary spend on customer
experience, digital, analytics, ERP updates and improving overall efficiency.
The sector continued to be one of the largest employers in the country,
directly hiring 3.5 million professionals, adding over 230,000 employees during
the fiscal. "India
is jumping the technology maturity curve and is emerging as a digital economy.
The recent official announcements on Digital India', Make in India' and Skilling India' are creating a renewed
thrust on the domestic market," Chandrashekhar added. Thus, the RBI has
focused its triggers on overall domestic credit and the health of banks and
corporates to sustain the increase in credit.