Amazon adventures in India reveal some of the contours of today’s international business world and show how multinationals work with the constituents of their global footprints.
New reports today show Amazon is not going to show up for a committee meeting of India’s Parliament October 28 as part of the process for a ‘Data Protection Bill’ meant to change how companies handle the private data of Indian citizens.
Calling this truancy a “breach of privilege,” Indian officials are suggesting some “coercive action” may result.
This is just one example of a recent trend where nations previously serving as passive markets for technology multinationals have become strident in demanding operations beneficial to their national interests.
Trump’s crusade against TikTok, WeChat and Huawei may come to mind. Yesterday, we also reported on Chinese responses to the plan to sell UK firm Arm to American company Nvidia.
As with the previous example, analysts have not shown exactly what steps India will take, or what the country’s leverage consists of.
“Amazon is doing huge business in India … If it doesn’t appear before the committee, coercive action may be initiated against it,” says Lekhi, as quoted by a Reuters reporter today who notes that Lekhi made the comments “without explaining what the action could be.”
“A spokeswoman for Amazon, which counts India as a key growth market, said it had no immediate comment on Lekhi’s remarks,” added the Reuters writer.
What should be clear to global investors is that today’s business game is a little different than it’s been in the past. Nationalism and protectionism are dramatically impacting business as usual in the global market. This is very important for your portfolio and your investment strategy, so it’s a good idea to get a handle on these new realities as you ponder where to put your money in the technology sector.
