AMAZON TO INVEST $3BILLION IN INDIA

Amazon will invest $3 billion in India, its fastest-growing market: Jeff Bezos

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US founder and CEO of Amazon.com Jeff Bezos poses on a lorry after handing over a two billion dollar cheque to Indian Vice President and Country Manager of Amazon.in, Amit Agarwal (unseen) in Bangalore on September 28, 2014. The investment will go towards raising the bar for online shopping in India. AFP PHOTO/Manjunath KIRAN (Photo credit should read Manjunath Kiran/AFP/Getty Images)

IMAGE: AFP/GETTY IMAGES

BY SONAM JOSHIINDIAJUN 08, 2016

In a bid to increase its market share in India's fast-growing but competitive e-commerce space, Amazon will invest an additional $3 billion in the country. 

The cash influx will take the company's total investment in the country to more than $5 billion. Amazon founder and CEO, Jeff Bezos, also revealed that India was now the company's fastest-growing market.

SEE ALSO: Amazon removes doormats with Hindu gods after Twitter outcry in India

Bezos made the announcement at an event in Washington DC on Tuesday, attended by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on a two-day state visit to the US.  

"I can assure you it’s only the beginning, and as we say in Amazon, it’s only day one," Bezos said.

Bezos also announced the opening of a Web Services Cloud division and Amazon's largest software engineering development centre outside the US in Hyderabad, adding that both would help create jobs. 

"We have already created some 45,000 jobs in India and continue to see huge potential in the Indian economy," Bezos added.  

India's online retail market is expected to grow from $16 billion in 2015 to $119 billion by 2020, making it an important region for international growth for Amazon. In 2014, Bezos had invested $2 billion in India in order to gain a foothold in the Indian market and catch up to local rivals Flipkart and Snapdeal. 

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos is presented with the 2016 USIBC Global Leadership Award by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the 41st Annual Leadership Summit at the Mellen Auditorium, June 7, 2016 in Washington, DC.

IMAGE: MARK WILSON/GETTY IMAGES

Amazon was a late entrant in the Indian market, starting its country operations in June 2013. In comparison, Flipkart was started in 2007 and Snapdeal in 2010, giving them an early-mover advantage. However, recent reports suggest that Amazon has been catching up to them. 

On the other hand, Flipkart and Snapdeal have been going through a rough patch as they both struggle to raise new funds. Several star Silicon Valley hiresmade by the two companies have also quit within the short span of a year.Flipkart has seen several rounds of devaluation from its investors. As a result, both Indian companies have been forced to undertake spending cuts, pull back on discounts and deferred the joining dates on new campus hires.

Most significantly, the latest announcement places Amazon's investment in India above the funds raised by Flipkat at $3.15 billion and Snapdeal at $1.7 billion, making its rise in India much easier.