Wipro sees no sign of U.S. downturn

By Savio D'Souza

BANGALORE (Reuters) - Wipro Ltd (WIPR.BO: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), India's third-largest software services exporter, sees no indication of a downturn in the U.S. economy hurting its business, but a firmer rupee was a concern, its chief financial officer said.

"I do not think it is crystal clear at this point in time that shorter-term the US economy will get into a recession," Suresh Senapaty said at the Reuters India Investment Summit in Bangalore on Friday.

He added that the U.S. subprime mortgage crisis would have minimal impact of less than 1 percent on its business and the U.S., which contributes to more than 60 percent of its revenue, would continue to be a large part of its growth plans.

Many banks and financial companies have been hit hard by a credit crisis sparked by sub-prime lending and face huge losses that may cut into their IT spending, which investors fear may hit Indian software services exporters.

Alleviating such fears, Senapaty said ... "Even if the technology spending does not go up, the advantage for Indian manufacturers and Indian vendors continues to be higher and that would mean more sourcing from India."

RUPEE CONCERNS

Senapaty also said that the rising rupee was a concern and that a 2 percent to 3 percent currency appreciation was tucked into the company's business model.

The rupee <INR=IN> has risen about 12 percent against the dollar this year, hitting a near-decade high of 39.16 in November.  Continued...