Blog: Indian CEOs Most Confident, Seems India Has Got Back its Mojo

(Shweta Rajpal Kohli is Editor-Economic Affairs at NDTV)

First the bad news: Bosses around the world are more worried about the global economy than they were a year ago. That's what a survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers released every year on the eve of world economic forum meeting at Davos seems to suggest.

And now the good news. India is a notable exception. It's CEOs are the most confident among the world. Just talk to a bunch of CEOs walking down the Promenade - the main street in Davos, and you realise the PwC survey is probably right. All of corporate India that was whining away about policy paralysis and India falling off the map now says - India has got back its mojo. They're exuding a sense of optimism not seen in years.

Ask Rahul Bajaj, a Davos veteran of 35 years (he got awarded as longest standing attendee of Davos!) and he says: there is a day and night difference between last year and this year in the way the world is viewing India and he insists, it's only because of Narendra Modi.

People had turned their backs on India but the same people now want to know what is happening in India, says industrialist Ajit Gulabchand.

While the PM Modi deserves credit for changing the mood around in India, crashing oil prices have helped India too, giving our oil guzzling country a fresh lease of life. The opposite is true for Russia- with the oil crash, its CEOs have become the gloomiest around the world, tumbling down from the top of the confidence table -- another sharp turnaround story playing out in Davos.

China's slowdown remains the big talking point here. With china's growth rate dropping to a 24 year low, both the IMF and World Bank are predicting India is all set to take over china as the fastest growing large economy. But here's a note of caution from Manish Kejriwal of Kedaara Capital: if China slows down, it's bad news for the global economy. And it's bad news for India. He also worries about how quickly the pendulum has shifted in favour of India and about valuations in stock markets getting a bit over stretched.

Stock markets may have moved ahead of the real economy driven by a shift perception - but that's the first big sign that better days are in store for the Indian economy. For now, surveys like the one done by PWC point to only two bright spots in the world economy: US from the developed world, and India from the emerging markets. It's not a surprise then that President Obama's visit to India will be watched closely by leaders around the world. The two economies will perhaps be the key engines of global growth in the years to come. A dose of realism from TK Kurien of Wipro on the much hyped visit of President Obama: it won't be a watershed event. Nothing will change dramatically on the ground for the two countries.

But who cares. India is all set to make a song and dance about it. And why not?

The opinions expressed here are the personal opinions of the author. NDTV is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, suitability or validity of any information given here. All information is provided on an as-is basis. The information, facts or opinions appearing on the blog do not reflect the views of NDTV and NDTV does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.