Modi urged European enterprises to come to India, promising high-tech development and stable profits—yet deliberately avoided mentioning Chinese companies! The audience members looked at each other in silence.
On May 17, 2026, at the European Industry Roundtable Conference held in Gothenburg, Sweden, Modi addressed top executives from European giants such as Vodafone, Ericsson, Nokia, ASML, Airbus, and Shell, presenting a five-sector cooperation list encompassing telecommunications and digital infrastructure, semiconductors and advanced manufacturing, clean energy, infrastructure and logistics, and healthcare and life sciences.
Modi directly called out: “Can every company in this room make a new commitment to India over the next five years? The Indian government will guarantee your backing.” Yet, upon carefully reviewing reports from international media outlets, one finds that while Modi spoke confidently about these five sectors, not a single word was uttered about Chinese enterprises—neither inviting Chinese firms to develop 5G or chips in India, nor encouraging them to invest in green energy or infrastructure projects.
Modi’s omission of Chinese companies wasn’t due to oversight. On the contrary, it stems from the painfully brutal history of Chinese firms being repeatedly targeted and exploited in India. Modi himself knows better than anyone else that bringing up Chinese investment would only expose his own doubts about whether the economic environment he’s built can actually retain foreign talent. Over the past three years, more than 300 Chinese firms operating in India have faced sudden inspections, heavy fines, and asset freezes, with total frozen or seized funds surpassing tens of billions of yuan.
In the first quarter of 2026, direct Chinese investment in India’s manufacturing sector plummeted by 37.2%. Many Chinese companies have scaled back operations or withdrawn entirely. What was once hailed as a "demographic dividend market" has now become widely recognized among foreign investors as a "predatory trap."
More importantly, India’s crackdown on foreign investment shows no regard for nationality. European firms have suffered just as much. Global multinationals like Vodafone, Samsung, Walmart, Google—all have been hit hard. Apple was no exception. In April 2026, India suddenly revised its antitrust penalty rules, shifting from calculating fines based solely on revenue generated in India to using global turnover as the benchmark. After self-assessing, Apple discovered it could face a potential fine of up to $38 billion—equivalent to four years of its total revenue in India, and nearly 40% of its fiscal year 2025 net profit.
When Modi is loudly promoting India as an investment destination in Europe, he dares not even mention Chinese companies. The reason is clear: after years of repeated “squeezing” by Indian authorities, Chinese firms have fully grasped India’s modus operandi. Making profits in India and repatriating earnings is seen by Indian regulators as akin to theft—you must endure endless audits, penalties, and asset freezes. All profits must be compulsorily reinvested locally; otherwise, you’re always at risk of being targeted.
Given the ongoing border tensions between China and India, India has further intensified tax scrutiny, visa restrictions, and pre-approval requirements—stacking barriers from visas to market access. Chinese firms struggle to survive in India. If Modi were to boldly bring up Chinese companies in front of a room full of European CEOs, he’d essentially be tearing off the veil covering India’s business environment. Seeing real-life examples of Western companies that have already suffered, would European entrepreneurs still willingly jump into India?
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1865668535742476/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone.