The five-year Foreign Trade Policy, to be unveiled on August 27, is expected to give incentives to Indian exporters to widen their global markets beyond the United States, the European Union and Japan in the face of the economic crisis in these key destinations.
Keeping in view the approaching Lok Sabha elections, the All Indian Congress Committee has appointed a battery of high-profile spokesmen for the Congress to showcase the achievements of the last 10 years of United Progressive Alliance government and publicise the various sectors where the UPA has performed. Renu Mittal reports
In a major policy reversal, the AAP government wrote to the Centre to withdraw the approval given by the previous Sheila Dikshit government for FDI in multi-brand retailing in Delhi, saying the entry of global chains such as Walmart and Tesco in India would result in large-scale job losses.
FDI inflows in the manufacturing sector rose by almost 45 per cent between October last year and this February.
Sharma says efforts on to bring dissenting ministries on board eBiz platform.
A letter reversing the decision was sent by Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje to Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma.
The government is believed to be working on a strategy to resolve the matter related to Wednesday's Supreme Court order asking Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Kun-hee to appear within six weeks before the Ghaziabad trial court in a pending payment case.
Rajya Sabha was adjourned twice during Question Hour on Monday as the Congress created uproar saying there were inconsistencies in government statements on the World Trade Organisation though Finance Minister Arun Jaitley asserted there was no contradiction.
Defence Minister A K Antony has shot down Commerce Ministry's proposal to raise Foreign Direct Investment in defence from 26 per cent to 49 per cent, saying it will be a "retrograde" step and "stymie" the growth of the domestic industry while increasing dependence on foreign manufacturers.
Margaret A Hamburg, the first commissioner of the US Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) to visit India officially, will meet heads of major domestic pharma companies such as Ranbaxy, Wockhardt, Cadila Healthcare and Lupin in New Delhi.
The move came as the country badly needs capital inflows as the rupee comes under pressure
The target of $500 billion in bilateral trade by 2020 is doable, feels Anand Sharma.
India's IT services sector witnessed 4.2 per cent growth in 2012-13.
The annual talk-fest of rich and powerful from across the world in snow-laden Alpine resort town of Davos will be attended by nearly 40 heads of government among more than 2,500 global leaders from over 100 countries.
Over a year after the deadline to grant Most Favoured Nation (MFN) trading status to India, the Pakistani government on Thursday declined to specify any time limit to meet the long-pending demand from here.
Industry is displeased over the failure of the National Manufacturing Policy, which has failed to invite any sizeable investment since it was launched more than two years ago.
The government is considering to tweak FDI policy in retail sector so as to allow global chains like Walmart, Carrefour and Tesco to open multi-brand stores in non-hilly cities with population less than one million.
Refusing to budge from its tough stand on food security issues, India pressed for a fair and balanced outcome of the WTO ministerial meeting in Bali.
Asking the government to tweak FDI norms in multi-brand segment, retailers said sourcing rules must be made similar to that of single brand while demanding foreign firms be allowed to put only 50 per cent of first tranche of investment in back-end infrastructure.
Inspections only in domestic authorities' presence, visiting US drug regulator told
The government has already said it is keen on starting ore mining and exports.
No one's quite sure on the retail FDI issue in this regard, after the new Rajasthan and Delhi governments cancelled the approvals given by their predecessors
The government is working to expedite clearances to $12 billion project of steel major Posco in Odisha that was awarded environment clearance last week, Commerce and Indutry Minister Anand Sharma said on Tuesday.
The Prime Minister directed that a special cell be created immediately in the Cabinet Secretariat.
Flaring of tempers comes atop much simmering trouble on clashing views; these stands might now get frozen.
India's plans to relax foreign direct investment (FDI) rules across a broad spectrum of industries have received the final approval from the Cabinet Committee of Economic Affairs (CCEA).
The prime minister is likely to talk about its possible extension.
Tourists aged 18 and over would be forced to hand over 3,000 pounds for a six-month visit visa
In January 2006, King Abdullah became the first Saudi monarch in 51 years to visit India.
The Congress, however, said it wanted to see the final print on the wording of the dispute resolution mechanism before committing its support to the Bill
Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has cancelled his visit to WEF annual meeting after a deadly Taliban attack in his country.
The Indian government has simplified FDI policy inorder to attract global retail chains.
Those scheduled to attend the five-day WEF Annual meeting, beginning January 21, include more than 40 heads of state or government, including those from the UK, Australia, Japan, Iran, Israel, Pakistan, Brazil, Italy, Mauritius, Republic of Korea and Switzerland, WEF announced on Wednesday at a press conference in Geneva.
Composite dialogue likely to be formally revived; PM visit might also be marked with grant of trade MFN status. Nayanima Basu reports
As a row erupted over his meeting with Mumbai terror attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed, journalist Ved Pratap Vaidik, considered close to Baba Ramdev, on Monday rejected suggestions by Congress that he might have acted as government's envoy, saying he was "nobody's envoy but my own".
India scored a remarkable win on food security, but trade partners will now put pressure on New Delhi to provide meaningful openings for industrial goods and services and be more accommodative on liberalising tariffs.
Corporate Affairs Minister Sachin Pilot intoned, "Recent incidents will certainly dampen business confidence and investment sentiment, both domestic and foreign; and perhaps also negatively affect decision making by bureaucrats and policy makers."
Top carmakers, including Maruti Suzuki India, Hyundai and Honda, are expecting a spike in their sales following the implementation of 7th Pay Commission recommendations.
Any delay in passing the coal bill may cause a crisis in the coal sector which would also affect the power sector.
Since allowing FDI in multi-brand retail has been left to the states, Indian companies may not benefit as foreign investors are wary of the politics.
