An Asian Development Bank paper on the subject prepared by Michele Alessandrini, Bassam Fattouh, Benno Ferrarini, and Pasquale Scaramozzino says that the structure of comparative advantage of industries in India has substantially transformed during this period. The technological content of trade has shifted gradually from low-technology sectors toward medium-technology sectors. In addition, the profile of trade specialization has moved toward some of the most dynamic sectors in world trade.

More specifically, those industries where import tariffs have been reduced the most have experienced, on average, the largest improvements in their degree of intratrade specialization. This is consistent with a view that trade liberalization promotes greater competition within the industry, and enhances the average productivity of firms in the sector. The increase in trade specialization has been greater in the industries characterized by medium- to high-technological content, and in the fastest-growing industries in world trade.

Trade liberalization policies can be controversial, since it is often feared that the exposure to foreign competition may place domestic firms at a disadvantage. While individual firms may have suffered from the liberalization policies, this paper's findings show that these policies have been instrumental in enhancing the international competitiveness of industries. This provides strong evidence in support of the trade liberalization policies India pursued since the early 1990s.

Until the early 1990s, India was a relatively closed economy. Average import-weighed tariffs exceeded 80%, more than 90% of tradable goods were protected by quantitative restrictions on imports, and foreign investment was subject to strict limitations.