'Exceptional work': JP Morgan CEO hails PM Modi’s leadership

Jamie Dimon, the CEO of JPMorgan Chase & Co., commended Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his "exceptional work" in India, emphasising that many US officials have unrealistic expectations about how they should govern their own countries while Modi addresses challenges directly. Dimon spoke at an event hosted by the Economic Club of New York, praising the recent reforms implemented by Modi's administration.

Dimon lauded India's impressive education system and infrastructure, noting Modi's boldness in reforming bureaucratic norms. He also highlighted India's achievement of providing banking access to 700 million people and streamlining payment transfers. Furthermore, he expressed admiration for India's revamped indirect tax system, which he credited with reducing corruption by standardising tax procedures across states. Additionally, he emphasised the need for a similar system in the US.

Regarding the US, Dimon highlights that the US economy has been booming for a while. He emphasised that before Covid, there was slow growth in the US, and he mentioned probable reasons behind it such as regulation, bureaucracy, anti-growth taxation, and other factors. He further elaborates that "unemployment is at an all-time low, under 4% for around 2-3 years, and credit hasn’t worsened. Going back to the 70s, deficits were half of what they are currently".

He further warns about potential economic challenges like national debt, inflation, and geopolitical tensions, advocating for improved relations between financial institutions and regulators. He expressed willingness to contribute to his country's economic development but emphasised the need for practical policies in government.

In February, the White Paper presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Parliament said the Indian economy underwent structural reforms that had strengthened the macro fundamentals, leading the economy from the "Fragile Five" to the "Top Five" within a decade.

"The government's economic policy focus has been committed to undoing the damage of the previous decade and restoring India's growth potential by getting the financial sector back on track, facilitating economic activity by easing conditions for business, and massively augmenting physical and digital infrastructure to enhance India's connectivity and, thus, the competitiveness of its manufacturing sector," it stated.

"From being the 10th largest in 2014, India has surpassed many giants to become the fifth largest economy in 2023 (but for the pandemic in 2020, we would have become the 5th largest at least two years earlier) and is slated to become the third largest by 2027 as per IMF projections," it added.