Japan to invest $4.5bn in DMIC; N-talks to resume

Continuing to strengthen economic cooperation with India, Japan on Wednesday committed an investment of $4.5 billion in the ambitious Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) project.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and visiting Japanese Premier Yoshihiko Noda held talks for over one-and-half hours, focusing on accelerating ties across the spectrum, including political, economic and global.

India and Japan also agreed to a dollar swap agreement of $15 billion, which will help stabilise the rupee and boost trade between the two countries, a joint statement said. An earlier similar arrangement was for just $3 billion, and it expired in June.

The dollar swap arrangement would help India in supporting the rupee, which has depreciated by more than 15 per cent against the dollar since April.

India and Japan also agreed to launch a ministerial-level economic dialogue, spur talks for a social security accord, collaborate in high-technology trade and rare earths, and step up collaboration in developing high-speed rail networks in India.

The two sides decided to pursue talks on a new industrial corridor between Chennai and Bangalore, India's emerging economic hub where Japanese companies have made large investments.