Just three foreign manufacturing firms set up shop in India in FY25: report

Just three new foreign manufacturing firms were established in India in fiscal 2024-25, The Economic Times reported, citing an analysis of ministry of corporate affairs (MCA) data.

This comes as the government continues to woo global manufacturers through several incentive schemes.

All three firms that entered the manufacturing sector during the year operated in the machinery and equipment space.

These firms were the only additions to the overall industrial sector, which includes manufacturing, construction, electricity, gas and water supply, and mining and quarrying ET reported.

Meanwhile, 53 foreign companies set up operations in the services sector during the same period. Even though the number is higher than manufacturing, it is reportedly a drop from 91 service-sector entries recorded in 2019-20.

The share of industrial firms among newly registered foreign companies in India fell to 10.2% in 2024-25, down from 26% in 2019-20.

The latest figure shows the second-lowest number of new foreign industrial entrants since 2019-20, when 10 firms were established in 2020-21—the highest in the six-year span.

In recent years, the Indian government has introduced several programs to strengthen domestic manufacturing. These include the Make in India initiative, the Atmanirbhar Bharat campaign, and the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme targeting key sectors. In addition, corporate tax rates for new manufacturing investments have been reduced to encourage foreign participation.