Laying the foundation of a strong financial and economic partnership with the United States, India has invited US companies to invest in India’s vast infrastructure needs.

After signing a joint statement with the US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Indo-US Financial and Economic partnership, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said, “There is immense potential to invest in infrastructure sector.”

“More than 600 billion dollars could be invested in port, road and communication in the next five year,” Mukherjee added at a joint press conference in New Delhi.  

The two countries have been working on the modalities of ‘private-public partnerships’ (PPP) to unlock private sector financing in the infrastructure sector, says a joint statement.

The two countries also discussed macro-economic issues, with emphasis on managing capital flows and fiscal policy measures.

Geithner praised India’s emergence from the financial crisis faster than most other large economies.

“Deepening our ties with India is critical to the broader global effort to develop a framework for a strong, sustainable and balanced growth and will facilitate more trade, investment and job creation in the US and India,” Geithner said.

Bilateral trade between two countries stood at an estimated 40 billion dollars in 2009.    

Geithner also mentioned the reforms that Obama administration has undertaken.

“We are also engaged in an important set of reforms to improve our private health care system, to strengthen our education system, to increase energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions, to restore fiscal sustainability, and to fundamentally restructure and reform our financial system.”

The US Treasury Secretary, who arrived in India on two-day visit along with Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Donald Kohn, also met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh earlier in the day.

On Wednesday, Geithner will hold a roundtable discussion with the captains of Indian industry in Mumbai.