Govt Seeks Exporters’ Inputs To Check Decline

New Delhi: Commerce minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday discussed with exporters the measures to curb the decline of outbound shipments, and sought their inputs on issues plaguing the sector to improve ease of doing business.


India's merchandise exports contracted for the 15th month in a row in February amid tepid global demand and a volatile global currency market. During the meeting, exporters demanded incentives to reverse the trend and requested the government to provide better market access. Some of the other issues flagged by exporters include non-tariff barriers of other countries, currency volatility, special economic zones, problems in dealing with customs authorities and service tax.


"The issue was mainly to check the downward trend of exports. We have requested the Commerce Ministry to at least add some markets where there is better scope where the decline is not so much... Commerce secretary has assured that they (government) will certainly look into all the issues," Federation of Indian Export Organisation President S C Ralhan said. "We have requested that the interest subvention be extended to merchant exporters because they buy from MSME manufacturers," he told reporters on the sidelines of an interaction between representatives of export promotion councils (EPCs) and Commerce Ministry. The previous meeting was held on February 2.

 

Source :timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Bovine Meat Exports Fall On China Ban, Brazil Competition

NEW DELHI: India's meat exports have fallen sharply - and it's not the outcry over beef that's responsible.

The global financial turmoil, low price realisation and a Chinese ban on imports have reduced India's bovine meat exports from a year earlier, when the country dislodged Brazil from the No. 1 spot. Shipments have fallen due to lower demand in high-consumption markets such as Egypt, Syria and Iraq, along with competitive rates offered by Brazil, the secondbiggest exporter.

India's buffalo meat exports are down almost 16% to $3.17 billion in the first three quarters of 2015-16 from $3.77 billion in the year-ago period.

The export of sheep and goat meat has declined 5.7% in this period. "Buffalo meat exports have declined and the main reason is the devaluation of Brazilian currency due to which price differential between Indian and Brazilian exports has reduced, rendering us less competitive," said an official.

India also lost a significant market in China, which prohibits the entry of bovine meat on grounds of alleged foot-and-mouth disease.

Bovine meat exports fall on China ban, Brazil competition
Slowing global demand is also not helping India's case, as is evident in the Middle East and Africa. "World over, the economies are down-...Many countries are finding it difficult to sustain their economies," said Sunil Sud, a partner at Delhi based Al-Noor Exports, which, according to its website, is one of the oldest and largest exporters of frozen buffalo meat in the world. Egypt has a currency crisis and demand in Iraq, Syria and Saudi Arabia is down, he said.

The situation is contrary to what the US Department of Agriculture said on livestock and poultry meat exports last year in its report in August.

According to the data, India exported 2.4 million tonnes of beef and veal in 2014-15, compared with 2 million tonnes by Brazil and 1.6 million by Australia. The US government classifies buffalo meat as beef. India does not permit export of beef that includes meat and edible offal (heart, liver, tongue, kidneys) of cows, oxen and calves.

The official said that due to adverse demand conditions, in many cases Indian exporters are ready to sell at lower prices, especially in the Middle East.

The industry also blames lack of incentives in the current foreign trade policy for falling bovine meat exports. "The basic problem is global demand. The internal domestic problem has always been there. It is only a contributory factor," the official said. Sud corroborated: "There has been no change in policy. Indian policy has been consistent for many years."

Source :economictimes.indiatimes.com

Jute Industry Needs Innovation To Battle The Blues, Say Experts

KOLKATA: The Indian jute industry, which is grappling with shrinking production and dearth of skilled manpower, is trying to break free of its 'gunny bag' image as neighbouring Bangladesh forges ahead in the global marketplace.

"Lack of innovation and diversification is the biggest bottleneck for the jute industry in India," said Chhabilendra Roul, additional secretary at the agriculture ministry's research and education department.

Indian jute industry is bogged down by the fibre's association with old-style sacking for grain rather than the more aesthetic uses that it's being put to in the home and elsewhere. It's also not been able to take advantage of the global shift toward natural products.

"Sacking still rules the market and manufacturers shy away from diversification because of the steady orders they procure from rice and wheat producing states and their lack of exposure to the exponentially growing global market for jute diversified products," said Roul, who's written a book on jute, on the sidelines of a discussion hosted by The Indian Natural Fibre Society (TINFS) in Kolkata.

Indian jute has traditionally been inferior to that produced in Bangladesh.

"The quality of fibre is a hindrance for the industry to venture into household accessories and fashionable items that have huge demand abroad," National Jute Board secretary Arvind Kumar said at the event, hosted in collaboration with the National Institute of Research on Jute and Allied Fibre Technology (NIRJAFT).

"This gap can be bridged with technology. The industry is in dire need for technology upgrade and modernization," he said. "Diversification into newer products is the only way for the sector to thrive in today's world."

The creation of composites is a potential area of diversification, said Sabu Thomas of the Interna tional and Inter University Centre for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (IIUCNN) and International Unit on Macromolecular Science and Engineering (IUMSE), Kerala.

India shipped around 200,000 tonnes of jute goods abroad, valued at Rs 2,000 crore, in the year ended March 2015. Exports by Bangladesh, in comparison, topped 800,000 tonnes, worth Rs 5,000 crore, during the same period, according to the Indian Jute Mills Association (IJMA).

"We must not look at jute as a cheap product," said OP Prahaladka, director and national convener for the eastern region at the Export Promotion Council for Handicrafts, highlighting the innovative use of the fibre in adding aesthetic value to household items.

India exports diversified jute products worth about Rs 800 crore every year. "We have sufficient resources to take it to Rs 1,600 crore," Prahaladka said. "But it needs entrepreneurial support. Without support from the private sector and greater synergy between the government and entrepreneurs, it is impossible to revive the industry."

 

Source :economictimes.indiatimes.com

India's Steel Imports Surge In March After 4 Months Of Falls

NEW DELHI: India's steel imports rose 18 percent in March, snapping four straight months of falls, provisional government data showed, on the back of deals struck before the government imposed a floor price in February to curb cheap imports.

Last week, the government extended safeguard taxes on some steel products until March 2018, and in February imposed a floor price on imports to deter countries such as China from undercutting local mills, the first such move in more than 15 years.

India, the third-largest steel producer in the world, shipped in 994,000 tonnes of the alloy last month, 18.2 percent higher than the corresponding month a year earlier, data from the Joint Plant Committee of the steel ministry showed.

"Some steel could have been booked in January and February. This is probably what has arrived in March," said Goutam Chakraborty, an analyst at Emkay Global Financial Services.

"Imports are likely to decline again in April and May," Chakraborty added.

Imports rose 20.2 percent in the fiscal year ended March 2016 compared with the same period last year, the data showed. Imports were up 9.1 percent compared with February.

Domestic steel makers including JSW SteelBSE 2.82 %, Tata SteelBSE 5.24 % and Kalyani Steels have lobbied the government for more protectionist measures as margins have taken a hit due to cheap overseas purchases from China, as well as Russia, Japan and South Korea.

Consumption of steel, in the only major market where steel demand is growing, rose 4.3 percent between April 2015 and March 2016, largely driven by imports.

Steel exports by Asia's third-largest economy fell 32.4 percent at a time when the United States has named India among countries that violated anti-dumping law on cold rolled flat products and slapped a tax.

The following table shows steel production as well as trade data. Figures are in million tonnes. Some numbers have been rounded off.

 

Source :economictimes.indiatimes.com

Assured Of Supplies From Coal India, Ntpc Refuses Any Imports This Year

KOLKATA: State-run NTPC, the country's biggest thermal power generator, will not make any coal imports this year as it has been assured of adequate supplies by Coal India. NTPCBSE -0.75 % has been relying on imported coal for the past 10 years to meet its needs.

"Towards the beginning of 2015-16, NTPC was planning to import around 21 million tonne of coal, which was later scaled down to 16 million. However, following more than adequate supplies from Coal India, the company deferred its coal imports for the year and received far less than the initial planned volume," a senior NTPC executive said on condition of anonymity.

According to some officials, NTPC imported only 9.47 million tonne of coal in the last fiscal year, a drop of 42% over the previous fiscal.

Going forward, NTPC may not need to import any coal because its captive mine, Pakri Brwadi, is scheduled to commence production in the next few months. However, some of the orders placed during the beginning of 2015-16 will get delivered this year although no fresh orders would be placed this year.

"The company's efforts during second half of FY16 as a result of rationalization of coal linkages, reduction in imported coal consumption, enforcement of third-party sampling of coal and other measures led to reduction in energy charges of coal stations by nearly 20%," another sebior NTPC executive said. "NTPC shall endeavour to bring down the energy charges further to help the discoms."

Source :economictimes.indiatimes.com