Outsourcing business grew 10% to £44bn this year, according to
the half-year figures from researcher
TPI.
The Europe, Middle East and Africa region showed major growth in
large contracts. More than 34 contracts worth more than £100m were
signed in the first half of the year, compared with 51 for the
whole of 2007 and 38 for 2006, TPI said.
The telecommunications sector outstripped both financial
services and manufacturing, but telcos are emerging as contenders
in their own right for multiple contracts.
The global outsourcing market is developing unevenly, with US
firms signing fewer large long-term contracts since 2006, the firm
said.
The market is also changing. Some sectors, such as
telecommunications and energy, are signing bigger contracts,
whereas retail, financial and business services firms are signing
more contracts for relatively less money.
TPI also found that the trend to
outsource to firms from the Indian subcontinent well-entrenched
and increasingly competitive.
Tata
Consulting Services, a leading Indian outsourcing provider,
said last week its first quarter profit to £148m, was sluggish at
2%.
N Chandrasekaran, chief operating officer and executive
director, said, "Traction in the manufacturing, life sciences and
retail verticals has helped drive growth in Q1." He was "cautiously
optimistic" for the rest of the year.