This expert says there's an opportunity for India in tariffs. What exactly is it

(L-R) Rahul Jain, MD & senior partner; head of BCG in India, Karan Singh, chairman, India offices; APAC sustainability & responsibility practice leader, Bain & Company and Rajiv Memani, chairman, EY India during a panel discussion at the Rising Bharat Summit 2025 in New Delhi

Karan Singh, chairman, India offices, APAC sustainability & responsibility practice leader, Bain & Company on April 8 said clients are looking for alternative scenarios after US President Donald Trump upended the global economy with the announcement of tariffs.

He said that the world needs to figure out what's going to happen with stagflation and a “lot of variables” need to be worked out, which is why there is an opportunity for India with differential tariffs announced for major economies.

“If we can negotiate well with US in trade deal, India can benefit in manufacturing. It can be a big buzz for the Indian economy,” Singh said during a panel discussion at the News18 Rising Bharat Summit 2025 in New Delhi at the Bharat Mandapam.

Singh further added that India needs to attract more foreign direct investments. “Need global champions to come in and set up in India. Need global scale to compete with China.”

Rajiv Memani, chairman, EY India, said uncertainty has gripped the world and “everyone is living on day-to-day situation”.

Memani said that Trump is determined to take manufacturing back to the US even if he has to apply pressure on countries and companies.

“It's creating uncertainty, people are unable to take business investment decisions and supply chains may have to be altered,” Memani said during the same panel conversation at the Rising Bharat Summit 2025.

Rahul Jain, managing director & senior partner; head of BCG in India, said the uncertainty in the global economy is likely lead to a slowdown in the investments and “decision paralysis”, which is likely to have an impact on capital expenditure.

However, India needs to grow at 8-9 percent each year, irrespective of the macro trends and manufacturing has to be a big part of that, said Jain.

Sectors to watch out

Jain also pointed out that India is strongly positioned in some of the sectors, including pharma and electronics.

“Electronics is a good story in India, which is yet to play its full potential,” said Jain, adding that Apple will be in wait and watch over its action plan for shipping iPhones to the US.

The Wall Street Journal on April 8 reported that the Cupertino-based tech firm is looking to shift some of its production from China to India in order to avoid high tariffs.

Jain also said that India should focus more on renewable energy, electronic, textiles sectors, which are unlikely to move out.

Startups debate

Amid recent debate over the quality of startups in India, Memani highlighted that the ecosystem is “starting to see signs” of companies receiving funding in areas of innovation and artificial intelligence.

Singh added that how India can play a role in AI will be critical going ahead, while Jain said climate and energy transition, manufacturing will be game changer and engines of growth.