Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council says step will balance trade deficit with the US.
The country's exports for the first time crossed the $400 billion mark in a fiscal on healthy performance by sectors such as petroleum products, engineering, gems and jewellery, and chemicals, according to the commerce ministry's data released on Wednesday. The merchandise exports rose by by 37 per cent to $400.8 billion in 2021-22 until March 21 against $292 billion in 2020-21. Previously, the outbound shipments had touched a record of $330.07 billion in 2018-19.
Snapping the two months slide, the country's merchandise exports rose marginally by 0.5 per cent to $34.58 billion in September while trade deficit narrowed to $20.78 billion. According to official data released on Wednesday, imports increased by 1.6 per cent to $55.36 billion in September compared to $54.49 billion in the year-ago period. The trade deficit, or the gap between imports and exports, was $20.8 billion during the same month last year.
India's exports fell for the fourth straight month in June as shipments of key segments like petroleum and textiles declined but the country's trade turned surplus for the first time in 18 years as imports dropped by a steeper 47.59 per cent.
The Rajya Sabha currently has 19 government Bills pending, with the oldest dating back to 1992. These bills cover a range of issues including population control, rent control, seed quality, migrant workers, and tribal autonomy.
The fear of being boycotted by large US stores like WalMart, JC Penny and GAP has led Indian apparel exporters to formulate a code to eliminate child labour from Rs 46,000 crore (Rs 460 billion) garment export business.
In august last year, the government had raised import duty on gold and silver to 10 per cent to curb the surging imports and burgeoning CAD.
After remaining in the positive zone for three months, India's exports contracted 1.2 per cent to $33.98 billion in July, while the trade deficit widened to $23.5 billion.
IT, IT-hardware, petroleum, engineering, leather and garments are the leading exports from the SEZs.
National Aluminium Company Ltd has won the Engineering Export Promotion Council's All India Export award in the "star performer" category for 2005-06, the firm said on Friday.
The Gems & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), the apex body set up by the Union ministry of commerce to monitor the jewellery business overseas, says it might call for pulling out of the diamond cutting and polishing business in China.
India pays 55% of the value of oil its imports from Iran in euro payments through Turkey's Turkiye Halk Bankasi.
India and the European Union are set to announce on January 27 the conclusion of negotiations and finalisation of a free trade agreement, which is aimed at boosting economic ties between the two regions amid disruptions in global trade due to US tariffs, an official said.
The exports have shown a fall of 6% during the first 11 months of fiscal 2006-07.
These exports stood at $3.3 billion in the same period last fiscal, according to the data provided by the Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council.
The issue has assumed serious proportions now. Suranjan Gupta, senior joint director, Engineering Export Promotion Council, said, many containers were being detained in Europe, to the extent that the steel ministry convened a meeting last week to discuss the matter. Europe accounts for 70 per cent of India's annual engineering exports of $33 billion.
Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council on Wednesday said it expects to attract foreign direct investment worth $2 billion in this fiscal besides a growth of 20-25 per cent.
Exports of jewellery from India have gone up 32 per cent in the last two months ended May thanks to increasing demand and sale diamonds abroad.
Besides, the council has sought reduction in customs duty on import of seashells.
The drug maker will lose some incentives if its membership is suspended, sources in Pharmexcil said.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday met exporters, a day after the release of the April export data which showed the sharpest fall in overseas shipments in 14 years, assuring them he would do his best in the Budget.
Gems and Jewellery exports from India would exceed $10 billion in 2003-04 as against the $9.1 billion in the last fiscal even as exporters have set a target of $16 billion by 2007.
However, during April-January FY'10, exports declined to $26.12 billion from $34.19 billion in the same period previous fiscal.
Government on Tuesday said it was optimistic of sustaining a high double digit export growth in the current year following assurance by exporters that they would be able to sustain the last fiscal's export performance.
In September last year, the exports stood at $3.5 billion, according to the Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council.
Of the total $32.5 billion engineering exports in 2009-10, EU accounted for about 30 per cent.
While the formulation is being worked out by the commerce ministry, the industry and export community is also in touch with senior functionaries in the finance ministry.
The growth came at a time when exporters had been complaining about reduced margins and weak export performance due to the strengthening rupee.
Export of Indian gems and jewellery is unlikely to surpass previous records, given the volatile price of gold and the consumers' increased inclination toward luxury items like perfumes and watches.
The engineering exports in the first month of 2009-10 plunged to $2.78 billion from $3.8 billion in the same month a year ago, according to the Engineering Export Promotion Council. However, the decline in April was not as sharp as in March, when the exports contracted by 34 per cent over the same period last year.
During April-September 2010-11, exports from the tax free enclaves had clocked Rs 1.39 lakh crore (Rs 1.39 trillion).
The Engineering and Export Promotion Council will send a 15-member delegation to China in February-March, 2005, to explore export potential, its chairman Rakesh Shah said.
Engineering Export Promotion Council has warned the government that growth in engineering exports will turn negative if the average rupee rate to a dollar falls below 40 during the year.
Silk exporters are already hit by rupee appreciation and competition from Chinese firms, Mittal said, adding that of the total 50 lakh workers in the sector, over 100,000 have lost jobs. The industry is apprehensive that the situation could worsen this year due to deepening of the US economic slowdown, which is spreading to other economies as well.
