Addressing a high powered business delegation, including chairmen of major Japanese companies, led by Japan's minister of economy, trade and industry, Mr Akira Amari, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said: "A very warm welcome awaits Prime Minister Shinzo Abe next month."

Prime Minister Singh described his visit to Japan in December 2006 as a "historic and landmark visit" that had contributed to "widening and deepening" India-Japan economic and business cooperation. He also said "India and Japan are united by shared and common values - our commitment to democracy, to the rule of law and respect for fundamental human freedoms."

Welcoming the renewed interest in investing in India among Japanese companies, the Prime Minister expressed India's gratitude for Japan's official development assistance (ODA) and hoped that Japan would invest in more projects like the Delhi Metro and the Dedicated Rail Freight Corridor (DFC).

Mr Taizo Nishimuro, Chairman of the Board of Tokyo Stock Exchange informed the Prime Minister that Japanese companies could use Japanese Deposit Receipts (JDRs) to tap nearly $13 trillion of Japanese household savings for investment in India. Prime Minister welcomed this new initiative and hoped JDRs would help finance projects in the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC). He said Government of India is working closely with concerned State Governments to ensure early and speedy implementation of the DFC and the DMIC projects. He said "India hopes Japanese capital, technology and enterprise will play an important role in helping us realize our growth potential."

Both Prime Minister Singh and Mr Amari expressed satisfaction with the on-going dialogue on cooperation in energy, especially in developing clean coal and energy efficient technologies. The Prime Minister also welcomed Prime Minister Abe's initiative on climate change which recognized the development aspirations of poor countries. He said that strategies to manage global warming must ensure "sustainable development and sustainable globalization."

The Prime Minister requested JETRO to encourage small and medium enterprises from Japan to also invest in India. He also welcomed Japan's proposal to set up a high powered economic research institute focused on East Asian economies. Chairman of Suzuki, Mr Osama Suzuki said India was also emerging as an attractive "gateway to Europe for Japanese companies."