State Bank of India plans to expand
Updated: 2012-03-06 19:42
By Tang Zhihao (chinadaily.com.cn)
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The State Bank of India (SBI), India's largest state-owned commercial bank, intends to expand its profile in China in order to help clients from both countries explore business opportunities.
Chairman Shri Pratip Chaudhuri said the bank plans to upgrade its representative office in Tianjin to a fully fledged branch, pending approval from Chinese authorities. A new branch in Guangzhou is also planned within the next five years.
Currently, SBI's Shanghai branch is its only office in China that can offer full range of commercial services.
"China has become India's largest trading partner in the past few years. We expect to enhance trading and investment activities between China and India and support the growth of Indian companies," said Chaudhuri.
Bilateral trade between India and China amounted to $61.8 billion in 2010. From 2005 to 2010, the annual growth rate of bilateral trade averaged 49 percent.