India & Malaysia: Service Sector Growth

This book examines the service sector growth of both India and Malaysia. India’s service sector has grown rapidly since the 1990s. Domestic demand for services has increased as incomes have risen, triggering the expansion of industries such as banking, education and telecommunications. Exports have also increased rapidly, led by information technology and business process outsourcing (IT-BPO). India’s ability to offer low-cost, high quality IT-BPO services has made it a world leader in this industry. The growing global competitiveness of Malaysia’s service sector is reflected in steady growth in trade volumes. Malaysia’s cross-border trade in services increased at an average annual rate of 15 percent to $60.6 billion from 2004 through 2008, accounting for 13 percent of total Malaysian cross-border trade and about 1 percent of global services trade in 2008.