Global IT research and advisory firm Gartner Inc expects India's revenues from Business Process Outsourcing to touch the $13.5-billion mark in 2007, with global players contributing 65 per cent of the revenues and domestic firms 35 per cent.

"The global players will contribute $9 billion in the next four years, while that of the local firms will be around $4 billion," Gartner Research principal analyst Debashish Sinha told at the curtain raiser preview of 'Gartner Summit India 2003'.

Outsourcing is the fastest growing IT industry segment in the world, due to the 29 per cent annual growth rate of offshore IT services and 68 per cent growth rate of offshore BPO, he said.

On the offshore boom, he said that the market is poised to grow by around 20 per cent by 2004 to touch $6.4 billion, from the eight per cent growth registered in 2002 at $1.8 billion.

Meanwhile, Gartner vice-president Rita Terdiman said while India was a preferred destination in the past, a consolidation is being witnessed with the emergence of many near- and off-shore locations.

Canada, with its proximity to US lifestyle and culture, and Mexico, which would be the real-time global processing base, apart from Russia, China and Philippines are the other emerging markets for outsourcing, she added.

Gartner Asia Pacific senior vice-president Bob Hayward said four key sectors --communications, manufacturing, financial sectors and government -- are to be the key drivers of the outsourcing movement.

The communication industry is expected to grow to 64 per cent by 2005 from 52 per cent growth posted in 2002, manufacturing to 31 per cent (from 24 per cent), financial sector to 24 per cent (18 per cent) and governmental sector would grow to around 20 per cent (15 per cent), he added.

Gartner Summit India 2003, which kicks-off on Wednesday, would discuss global IT perspective, trends affecting Indian IT industry and would focus on government, banking, financial services and insurance, telecom and manufacturing sectors, said Partha Iyengar Gartner India, vice-president, research.

The two-day seminar, conducted on three-tracks with 38 sessions, would be addressed by around 16 analysts from Gartner, he added.