India Will Be To Services, What China Has Been To Manufacturing: NSE Chief Economist

India is rapidly emerging as a global hub for services exports with a compound annual growth rate of 14.8% outpacing goods exports, which grew at 9.8% , NSE officials said.

The National Stock Exchange highlights robust growth in the services sector, structural reforms, and demographic advantages driving the country's economic transformation.

"India will be to services, what China has been to manufacturing. It is emerging as global hub for services exports," NSE Chief Economist Tirthankar Patnaik said.

India's services exports have grown at a compound annual growth rate of 14.8% over the past three decades, outpacing goods exports which grew at 9.8%, the official, who made a presentation before a visiting media team from Jammu and Kashmir, said.

With a 4.3% share in global services exports, India now ranks seventh globally, led by telecom, IT, and business services that contribute nearly three-fourths of total service exports. Technology exports alone crossed $200 billion in fiscal 2025, the officials said.

"India has also emerged as the world's largest hub for Global Capability Centre. Their number has risen from 1,430 in fiscal 2019 to 1,700 in fiscal 2024, and is projected to touch 2,200 by fiscal 2030, employing up to 26 lakh professionals," they said.

The GCC market size is expected to expand from $40 billion in fiscal 2019 to $100 billion by fiscal 2030, the data said.

"Key structural and economic reforms include the Goods and Services Tax , Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, Real Estate Regulation Act (RERA), and corporate tax cuts", they said.

The officials further said that liberalisation through faceless assessments, simplified labour laws, and performance-linked incentive schemes has boosted investor confidence apart from privatisation and globalisation measures, including bank mergers, foreign trade agreements, FDI expansion, and the internationalisation of UPI, which have further strengthened the economy.

On the social empowerment front, the officials also highlighted major social reforms that have transformed everyday lives -- over 100 million LPG connections under the Ujjwala Yojana, more than 120 million toilets built under the Swachh Bharat Mission, and massive financial inclusion through Jan Dhan Yojana.

They said India is poised to emerge as a $5-trillion economy over the next few years, propelled by robust service exports, a young and expanding workforce, and increasing participation in capital markets.

The presentations projected India's real GDP growth at 6.3-6.8%, with nominal growth estimated at around 12%.

"At this pace, India is set to become the world's third-largest economy by 2027, overtaking Japan and Germany," the NSE data showed.

The exchange outlined a multi-pronged growth strategy focused on expanding private investment, strengthening medium and small enterprises, bridging the education–employment gap, and promoting green financing and agriculture-led growth.

"NSE's analysis reaffirms India's transformation into a services-driven powerhouse," the NSE official added.