By: Manvi Banta, Research Analyst, GSDN

This article mainly focuses on how US-India relations will impact under newly elected President Donald Trump as USA’s 47^th President. It has a potential of redefining bilateral relations and how it is affecting India defense partnerships and geopolitical relations. With Donald Trump securing a second term as President of the United States, the 2024 election marks his second successful presidential run after securing the presidency in 2016 and serving as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.

Defense and Strategic Effects

Trump’s administration elevated the U.S.-India relationship to a “comprehensive strategic threat,” encouraging a coalition global strategic partnership. India is a vital member of the QUAD alliance, and the cooperation will probably concentrate on increasing defense, intelligence sharing, and military presence in the area.  Trump’s administration was the first to label China as a “to counter Beijing’s influence”, including the formation of the Quad in 2017. India, which shares 3,488 km of disputed border with China, enhances US-India defense cooperation, especially in countering China’s growing influence in the Indo-Pacific. Trump administration prioritized enhancing defense ties with India, viewing India as a key partner in its Indo-Pacific strategy.

Trump’s rhetoric toward Pakistan was often harsh, as he accused the country of harboring terrorists and providing support to militant groups that destabilized Afghanistan and India as Pakistan is a central player of terrorism.

Under Trump, U.S.-India defense relations were significantly strengthened, with agreements like the COMCASA (Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement) and LEMOA (Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement), facilitating better interoperability and defense cooperation. A return to the presidency could lead to continued or even enhanced military collaboration.

Foreign Portfolio Investments (FPI)

India’s booming digital economy and growing demand for data storage have attracted significant foreign investment in data centers and cloud infrastructure. Global giants like Amazon, Microsoft, Google, and Oracle have committed to expanding their cloud and data center operations in India.

Indian government’s push for digital transformation, coupled with a large tech talent pool, is positioning India as a key player in AI, machine learning, and robotics. Investments from both Western and Asian companies are increasing in this space.

FPIs are foreign entities or individuals investing in assets that are relatively liquid and easily tradeable, such as equities and bonds, typically with shorter investment horizons than Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), which involves long-term business commitments.

Both the US and Indian IT sectors stand to gain from increased IT investments. However, offshoring might face challenges if Trump encourages more jobs in the US. A cut in corporate tax by Trump is likely to bring more business for the Indian tech companies.

Under Trump’s first term, IT companies grew at a CAGR of 13% during 2016-2020 and the IT index generated a return of 45% despite challenges on visa and offshoring.

How Trump 2.0 will impact his branded homes in India?

The first Trump Tower in India was unveiled in 2014 in Mumbai and was developed through licensing agreements with Lodha Group. Through Licensing agreements with various developers, Trump Towers came up in Mumbai (Lodha), Pune (Panchshil Developer), Gurugram in NCR and in Kolkata.

Tribeca Developers is the Trump’s Organizations’ exclusive Indian partner, founded by Kalpesh Mehta. Initially, the going for Trump Tower projects in India were slow and Mehta could license the brand only to Lodha in Mumbai and Panchshil in Pune. In 2018, Trump Tower with 250 units was launched in Gurugram and another with 136 units was launched in Kolkata. Trump Towers have also been planned in Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Chennai.

How much are they priced at?

The Trump branded houses are priced in the range of ₹5-15 crore per apartment. The demand for such Uber-luxury homes is going up significantly in India. Across Trump projects in the country, over 600 super luxury homes have been sold with a total combined revenue of more ₹5000-₹6000 crores.