Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman held a high-level Business Roundtable with prominent investors and business leaders in Chicago. The targeted discussion involved investment and development opportunities across manufacturing, A.I., digital systems, finance, infrastructure, food processing, defence, and advanced technologies on a sector-by-sector basis.

The event was conducted in a coordinated effort between the Consulate General of India, Chicago, and the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum. One of the key points throughout the entire interaction was that of ‘manufacture in India’ for domestic needs as well as for global exports, as revealed by the Ministry of Finance on X (Twitter).

Growing economic appeal and operational scale

The Finance Minister in her speech to foreign investors mentioned the basic principles that sustain the increasing attraction of India’s economy. The combination of a highly demanding domestic market, growth fueled by investment, resilience in macroeconomics, abundance of talent, and fast-growing infrastructure is evident. With foreign firms rethinking their global supply chain networks and investments, India emerges as an attractive combination of scale and strategic depth.

Nirmala Sitharaman acknowledged the grand stature of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI), like platforms such as Aadhaar, UPI, DigiLocker, ONDC and the India Stack, which have succeeded in establishing digital networks at population scale. 

For AI, analytics, engineering, semiconductors, and electronics, she said the next phase of growth is one where higher valuation operations can be built. Throughout the country, Global Capability Centres are quickly emerging as key global hubs for innovation and the development of international businesses.

Financial sector growth and strategic convergence

The Finance Minister attended to detail the rapid growth and expansion of GIFT IFSC as a leading global financial facility that has placed global investors and capital in direct touch with the domestic economy and commerce. By June 2026, the financial hub had 1,250 registered entities, expanding opportunities in international banking, fund management, reinsurance, aircraft and ship leasing, sustainable finance, and related cross-border activities.

Turning to the industrial manufacturing side, the conversation highlighted a tangible shift in focus from basic assembly lines to more advanced manufacturing processes, engineering, and technologies. It is accompanied by a specific policy change, the Production Linked Incentive scheme. 

Expansion of national infrastructure along freight corridors, railway modernization and railway electrification continues to generate good opportunities for the investment of institutional capital via structures such as the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund.

Sitharaman emphasised the expanding area of agricultural processing industries due to evolving dietary trends and increased income levels of consumers. She also highlighted the importance of local technological growth in the defence industry, particularly drones and autonomous systems being encouraged through various initiatives under the national schemes such as Atmanirbhar Bharat and iDEX.

In the Chicago Roundtable, Sitharaman told the audience that investments in India cannot depend solely on any individual sector. It depends on the strategic alignment of population size, economic growth, talent, infrastructure, technology, and ongoing policy reforms in the last decade. 

She informed the gathering that the current policy scenario is strictly devoted to fostering the expansion of enterprises ease their investment in business, manufacturing, innovation, and growth.

The Finance Minister offered an open invitation for co-development, co-production, and co-development of products for the global market for global partners and investors. She urged the global business community to recognize India not as merely a consumer country, but as a potential manufacturing platform, an advanced global innovation hub, and an ideal place for long-term capital investment.

Conclusion

The Chicago Business Roundtable underscored India’s proactive approach to becoming a major driver of the global economy. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman made it a straight investment narrative with an integrated perspective, connecting manufacturing with advanced technological innovation and financial hub building at GIFT IFSC. India is continuing work on its economic landscape in the continuum of policy measures such as the Production Linked Incentive to attract institutional investment, along with the Atmanirbhar Bharat concept.

This indicates the Finance Minister’s intention to encourage continuity of international partnerships, co-development, and the sustainable growth of enterprises in diverse industrial verticals, across borders, for domestic and overseas markets.