Stuttgart, February 13, 1995
Questions of international economic cooperation were at the center of a one-and-a-half hour meeting, to which the Minister-President of the State of Baden-Württemberg, Erwin Teufel, had invited the Executive Manager for Public Relations and Economic Policy at Daimler-Benz AG, Matthias Kleinert. In the run-up to the Minister-President's trip to India from February 16-26, 1995 at the head of a large economic delegation, Kleinert informed Baden-Württemberg's chief minister about the visit to India of the Chairman of Daimler-Benz AG, Edzard Reuter, at the start of January, when, among other things, Reuter met with Prime Minister Rao and Finance Minister Singh. Kleinert pointed out how great the interest of international companies in India has become since then. The topics of transport technology from regional aircraft to local rail transport, information technology and energy distribution were the most interesting subjects for the Indians involved in the talks, according to Kleinert, especially since international competition has been demonstrating considerable commitment to these areas.Daimler-Benz very much welcomed the fact, said Kleinert, that Minister-President Teufel was traveling to India with a delegation consisting largely of the representatives of small and medium-sized businesses, because in India a new middle class of 200 to 300 million people was happily developing. This means that not only is there considerable marketing potential in India, which might be exploited by western companies - through exports or on-site production - but that there are also economic structures forming which offer various opportunities for cooperation, especially for small and medium-sized businesses.
The companies within the Daimler-Benz Group have been represented in India for many years now. Mercedes-Benz AG has had a stake in the Tata Engineering and Locomotive Corp., TELCO, since 1954, and last year it was agreed to substantially extend and intensify this partnership. As part of a joint venture, a new car plant is being constructed in Poona, which already in 1995 is expected to produce approx. 50,000 petrol and diesel engines annually, as well as some 20,000 Mercedes-Benz E-class passenger cars. Since 1969 commercial vehicles and diesel engines have been manufactured at Bajaj-Tempo under license from Mercedes-Benz, while Daimler-Benz Aerospace will be setting up its own agency in New Delhi in the next few months.
A further focal point of the meeting between Teufel and Kleinert concerned relations with the United States against the backdrop of the announced closure of the America House in Stuttgart. Teufel and Kleinert both agreed that politics and trade and industry in Baden-Württemberg were called upon to become jointly active in ensuring the long-term presence of the US General Consulate in the Baden-Württemberg state capital. The trade department of the General Consulate in particular was of major importance for relations between the exporting state of Baden-Württemberg and the United States. Teufel and Kleinert were both convinced that the political and economic community of Baden-Württemberg should immediately discuss joint initiatives to assist in reviving the political, economic and cultural connections with the USA.
Back to the News archive
© 1995 Daimler-Benz