While 100 per cent FDI is allowed in single-brand retail, if the foreign investment exceeds 51 per cent, the 30 per cent mandatory local sourcing norm kicks in.
Similarly, FDI from Cyprus too increased by about three-times to $879 million in the last financial year from $296 million in 2018-19.
The Centre on Tuesday said it will not seek disclosure of flash sales from e-commerce players to regulate the fraudulent sale of goods and services but will take appropriate action as per the law on consumer complaints. Discount sales that benefit maximum to consumers will continue, but not fraudulent flash sales on the e-commerce platforms, the government said, adding that the e-tailers need not be "anxious" about the draft rules. Ban on fraudulent flash sales, mis-selling and appointment of chief compliance officer/grievance redressal officer -- are among key amendments proposed to the Consumer Protection (e-commerce) Rules, 2020, on which the government has sought public comments by July 6.
In the aviation sector, 100 per cent FDI is allowed under automatic route for MRO (maintenance, repair, overhaul), ground handling, and aircraft purchase.
The proposed amendments to the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020, that are envisioned to protect consumer interests, may further compound the impact of multiplicity of regulations on the e-commerce sector, the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce (IACC) had told the ministry of consumer affairs. IACC, the apex bilateral chamber for Indo-US business, had told the government that the proposed amendments would increase compliance liabilities that risk severely impairing the growth of the sector.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday that the partnership between India and Germany could serve as an example of success in a complex world as the two sides inked several agreements focused on sustainable development under which India would receive USD 10.5 billion assistance by 2030 to boost the use of clean energy.
Equity inflows worth $3.7 billion came from the sunny Caribbean jurisdiction in 2019-20, a 267 per cent increase from the $1 billion registered in 2018-19 making it India's 10th largest source of FDI.
At the heart of the issue is the way e-commerce is defined in the current draft policy.
As Amazon India, Flipkart are forced to shut down 60 categories and push out 45 mn products, a new lobby group comprising sellers is in the making to take up e-com concerns.
In its new avatar as the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), it will directly be responsible for 'the welfare of traders and their employees'.
FinMin had, recently, notified changes in FDI rules that made prior approval of the government mandatory for foreign investments from countries that share a land border with India. Hong Kong was ranked 14th on the list of countries with FDI flows to India, contributing $4.2 billion between April 2000 and December 2019, the data from DPIIT shows. India received FDI worth $2.34 billion from China in the same period.
The government on Monday extended till July 21 the deadline for public comments on proposed amendments to the Consumer Protection (e-commerce) Rules, 2020. Earlier, the last date for public comments on the draft e-commerce rules was July 6. "It has now been decided to extend the timeline for receipt of comments/ suggestions on the draft e-commerce rules. "Views/ comments/ suggestions on the proposed amendments may be sent by July 21, 2021," a government notice said.
Microsoft has become the first global Big Tech company to join the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), an Indian government initiative for developing a first-of-its-kind open network for digital commerce. The world's second-largest technology firm intends to introduce social e-commerce via its app in the Indian market later this year. ONDC is expected to open to the public in Bengaluru over the next fortnight as it enters into the next phase of the pilot for further fine-tuning before rollouts in other cities, according to a source in the know.
50 per cent of the flashlights market in the country is dominated by Chinese imports, which have been increasing.
The government on Thursday permitted 100 per cent foreign investment under the automatic route in oil and gas PSUs which have received in-principle approval for strategic divestment. The move would facilitate privatisation of India's second biggest oil refiner Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL). The government is privatising BPCL and selling its entire 52.98 per cent stake in the company.
As many as 15 companies, including Adani Copper Tubes, LG Electronics and Wipro Enterprises, with committed investment of Rs 1,368 crore, have been selected as beneficiaries under the PLI scheme for the white goods sector, the government said on Tuesday. In March, the commerce and industry ministry had reopened the application window for its Rs 6,238-crore PLI scheme for white goods -- air-conditioners (ACs) and LED lights-- with an aim to accommodate more players as several firms had expressed interest in the initiative. Last year, as many as 46 firms, including Daikin, Panasonic, Syska and Havells, with committed investment of Rs 5,264 crore were selected in the first round the scheme.
Many industry executives have said the draft e-commerce policy is being perceived as nationalistic but not overly protectionist and it is providing preference to Indian players against foreign companies. This might have an impact on investment by large players such as Walmart and Amazon in the country, said the executives. They said e-commerce was a very small portion of the retail industry and at a nascent stage and did not require heavy hammer regulations. Though the policy talks about being equally applicable to foreign and domestic players, it mentions that foreign direct investment (FDI) takes precedence over the e-commerce policy in any area of overlap.
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal urged start-ups to focus on three Ps - product, process, people - for building Aatmnirbhar Bharat.
The department for promotion of industry and internal trade (DPIIT) has suggested to the home ministry to allow limited activity in certain sectors such as heavy electricals and telecom equipment with reasonable safeguards. In a letter to Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla, the department said that these activities are essential to improve the economic situation and provide liquidity in the hands of the people.
The development comes amid a growing clamour for the boycott of Chinese products in India, combined with the government's push for Aatmanirbhar Bharat.
For months, offline retailers and traders have been lobbying hard for a national retail policy to protect their business from the growing influx of e-commerce.
In addition, 22,533 'Make in India' ventilators have been delivered to various states, Union territories and central institutions, the ministry said, adding that the Centre is also ensuring the installation and commissioning of the machines.
State minister Nawab Malik said the Centre has written to the Maharashtra chief secretary, saying the proposed Metro-3 car shed land in suburban Kanjurmarg belongs to it, as he accused the opposition BJP of conspiring to stall the project through the Union government.
Work on a dozen decisions to start by next week.
Gujarat, for the second consecutive year, has topped the Niti Aayog's Export Preparedness Index 2021 which is aimed at assessing the readiness of the states in terms of their export potential and performance. Gujarat was followed by Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh and Telengana, according to the government think tank's report. Union territories and states like Lakshadweep, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Ladakh and Meghalaya were placed at the bottom.
While other states are becoming competitive, Gujarat, say experts is not paying enough attention to maintaining its own position in terms of business reforms.
The government on Saturday made its prior approval mandatory for foreign investments from countries that share land border with India to curb 'opportunistic takeovers' of domestic firms following the COVID-19 pandemic, a move which will restrict Foreign Direct Investment from China.
Though the mandate is seen largely an outcome of Banerjee's welfare schemes, she has promised to industrialise at a faster pace, or so read the manifesto.
Singapore continued to be the largest source of FDI in India followed by Mauritius, the US, the Netherlands and Japan.
Billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Retail on Thursday told the government that complex legal structures have been used by some firms to bypass the country's e-commerce rules which from the very beginning do not allow foreign capital in the inventory-based model. At a meeting called by the commerce ministry on allegations that foreign online retailers created complex structures to bypass foreign investment rules and damage small traders, Amazon urged the government not to issue any clarification until investigations into its business practices had been concluded, sources said. At the meeting, Reliance Retail's representatives said the Indian e-commerce policy does not allow foreign capital in the inventory-based model and foreign investment is allowed only in pure technical infrastructure/ platform that facilitates the meeting of buyer with sellers.
Traders' body CAIT on Thursday urged the government to impose a ban on Amazon's e-commerce portal and its operations in India, accusing the global e-tailing giant of indulging in predatory pricing, deep discounting and inventory control. Addressing a press conference, CAIT secretary-general Praveen Khandelwal demanded an "immediate ban on Amazon's portal and its operations in India" and an investigation against the company in a time-bound manner. He also urged the government to probe the business practices of Amazon and Flipkart. However, responding to the allegations, both Amazon and Flipkart said they remain compliant with Indian laws.
While the new norms are part of the draft policy's guidelines to fight counterfeit and fake products on platforms, they might end up helping brands and e-commerce firms sign exclusive sale deals.
The government has decided to relax angel tax norms for startups, including increasing the investment limit to Rs 25 crore for availing income tax concessions.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday announced a slew of measures to boost economic growth and address distress in various sectors
Three years and Rs 28,710 crore worth of transactions later, it has more than double the number of sellers than Flipkart.
Conformity assessment procedures will be put in place to verify that goods and services sold on e-commerce platforms meet required standards and technical regulations, according to the draft e-commerce policy. The policy, which is under discussion, also stated that actions and things which cannot be done by the online platform entities "can also not be done" by any of its associates and related parties. Government may, from time to time, notify parties which fall in the definition of associates and related parties, it said.
However, that could only be for sectors where 100 per cent FDI is allowed under the automatic route and pose no risk to national security.
To address the shortage of COVID-19 jabs in the country, the government is exploring the possibility of boosting production of vaccines, including identifying manufacturing sites for indigenously developed Covaxin outside India, sources said.
Registering a jump of 10 places in the rankings, Uttar Pradesh occupied the second position in 2019 as against 12th in 2018.
A series of steps taken by the government to promote ease of doing business and liberalisation of foreign direct investment norms have helped India receive record FDI inflows so far this year, and implementation of measures like PM Gati Shakti, single window clearance and GIS-mapped land bank are expected to further push investments in 2022. Notwithstanding the global slowdown and the COVID-19 pandemic, total foreign direct investments into India rose to a record $81.72 billion in 2020-21. During April-July this fiscal, FDI (foreign direct investment) into the country increased by 62 per cent to $27.37 billion.
