SOUTH ASIAN JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT

Chindia Rising: How China and India Will Benefit Your Business
By Jagdish N Sheth Tata McGraw-Hill Publishing Co. Ltd., New Delhi, 2008; Pages: 205; Price: Rs. 525; ISBN: 978-0-07-065708-3

As the title of the book suggests, this publication seeks to explore business opportunities in the markets of Chindia, i.e., China and India. The book contains six chapters. In addition, it has a separate introduction and a concluding section. The introduction section sets the stage by demonstrating that China and India are rising. It sheds light on the recent developments and provides an overall appreciation of business opportunities. However, from the perspective of the book's title, the penultimate chapter is the most valuable as it looks at how Chindia rising affects the businesses of the developed nations. The chapter brings together positive and negative upshots of Chinda rising on the global trajectory. Undoubtedly, the first chapter is good at describing business potentials in the markets of China and India. It shows that these two emerging nations attract the attention of the developed countries in many ways. For instance, they offer cheap labor as well as a manufacturing base for tapping a huge market in the Asian region. They also make their presence strongly felt by acquiring relatively big companies to compete with the global giants. At the same time, with the investment-driven strategy, contrary to Japanese and Korean export-driven
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strategy, they have gained the reputation that has created an ideal base for investment in the recent decades. Consequently, China and India are considered to be important markets by several big Multi National Companies (MNCs) like Coca-Cola, IBM, Nokia, Hyundai, etc. From the perspective of global markets, China and India offer considerable business prospects. To keep the growth rate going, China and India have started looking for scarce resources externally and internally. It is noted that the high consumption rate, coupled with inadequate natural resources like oil, among others, have propelled thein to acquire big companies. For instance, Tata Steel oflndia and China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) of China have acquired Corus and Petro Kazakhstan, respectively. In addition, they are providing their manufacturing and engineering expertise to get the scarce resources. They have also realized the fact that all over the world, natural resources are limited; they have been consistently exploring new ways to overcome this problem. For instance, Suntech Power Holding in China and Suzlon in India are catering to the most vital need of power through non-conventional energy sources. This is

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one of the innovative ways of making power available internally. There are several areas like telecommunication and Pharmaceuticals, where innovation has made products affordable to the people who are at the bottom of the income group pyramid. The book conveys important facts and, more importantly, messages about the future position of China and India on the world stage. It foretells that the economic power gained by them would gradually transfer American hegemony to Chindia. It seems that the book is written on a very positive note. Apart from giving reasons for conferring the geopolitical power to Chindia, the author strongly feels that these two nations will hold the same position in the future as America today. However, he does not state the time by which this will happen, and for what reasons America would be left behind, despite having a strong economy with a good control over scarce resources. It is realized that there are two major hurdlescapitalism and democracy which impede the development processes in China and India. The author states that these two institutions are at an immature stage in both the countries. He opines that capitalism is the remedy for acute poverty because governments have failed to mitigate the effects of poverty. Although he does not mention how capitalism will succeed in bridging the ever-growing gap between the rich and the poor, he cites the names of few capitalists who are inking the story of Chinidia rising. It is palpable that very few readers will agree with the concept of capitalism, as brought out in this book.
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Is it capitalism that eradicates poverty or facilitates the rich to become richer? He further mentions that democracy is not in good health in China and India. However, he does not suggest ideal ways of running these countries. This book can be welcomed, if for no other reason, because it draws attention to two emerging markets that contain sizable business opportunities for the developed nations. It is very good at capturing the recent success stories of the Chinese and Indian companies at the global level. It provides an introduction to China's and India's markets along with a few insights. It may be a useful starting point for further reading. However, the book, by and large, presents a very myopic vision. It does not state how the growth rate will be sustained for the years to come, especially in India. It is worth mentioning here that all over the world, growth engine is derived by the manufacturing sector. However, in India, it is the service sector which contributes more than 50% to its GPD, and may not guarantee a sustainable economic growth rate. Indeed, the relative difference between Chinese and Indian growth stories, and consumer preferences for goods and services, has not been depicted adequately. The book also suffers from some other shortcomings. It does not devote much space to examine the fact that the markets of China and India also offer considerable challenges. It has created an impression that international operations can expect an easy time in these markets. However, this is not based on much in-depth

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consideration of business opportunities and challenges in China and India; rather, it is a handbook on the markets of Chindia. From the perspective ofthe book's title, it could have offered something that would benefit the business community more directly. Moreover, academicians and researchers may not relish the thought of Chindia rising, as captured in this book. One question that

may linger in their minds is: Can Chindia keep rising, or is it rising only to fall? ' ' ' Subhash Jha Doctoral Student '"''' ^"^"^"^ School nyderabad, India ^'"^^'^^ ^hashjha.iim@srnail.com subhash_rmtha@yahoo.com

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