Fifth of firms in Dubai's JLT are Indian

A fifth of the 612 new companies that set up in Dubai's Jumeirah Lakes Towers (JLT) Free Zone in the first four months of 2012 were from India, operating authority the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre Authority (DMCC) said on Sunday. Some of the new firms that have set up in JLT include Reliance Industries, Veedol International, Raj Petrochemicals, Malayalam Communications and Simbhaoli Sugar. In a bid to boost the number of Indian companies, the free zone will launch a road show across the country, taking in New Delhi and Mumbai between the May 8 and 11. "India is a huge market for us and over the past months and years we have been fortunate enough to attract a large number of Indian businesses and entrepreneurs to Dubai,” said James Bernard, business development director at DMCC. “These road shows are designed to provide a platform for interested companies and individuals in India to come and meet with us and even to start registering their companies there and then on location in Delhi and Mumbai,” he added. In total, there are over 4,200 companies registered with the JLT Free Zone, of which around 700 are currently from India.