India on Wednesday asked its South Asian neighbours to increase intra-regional trade as a cushion against slowdown in exports to the US and European markets.
Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma today assured exporters of government mediation to ensure that they get foreign currency loans at the new lower rate set by the RBI amid complaints against banks levying additional charges.
Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma and the US Trade Representative Ron Kirk would sign the India-US Trade Policy Forum Framework for cooperation on trade and investment in Washington on March 17.
The country is on track to surpass the export target of $200 billion for the current fiscal, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said in New Delhi on Monday.
US President Barack Obama would meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit in Toronto, a top Indian official said Wednesday. "The Prime Minister would be traveling for the G-20, he will be meeting President Obama," Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Anand Sharma told Indian media-persons in Washington.
For the third month in a row, exports rose in January, reporting 11.5 per cent growth to $14.34 billion, against $12.9 billion in the year-ago period, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said.
India Inc is ready to invest in Russia's pharmaceutical sector and the two governments are working on a joint document to this effect, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma has said.
Talks for an India-European Union free trade agreement started in 2007 and the eighth round of negotiations was completed in New Delhi last month.
India has assured global investors of a stable policy regime, stating no government initiative has ever been reversed or questioned in the past two decades.
The party asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi why a conspiracy was being hatched to destroy the minimum support price (MSP) system and snatch the livelihood of 62 crore farmers.
India and China took their economic relationship a step forward today, signing a memorandum of understanding on 'Expansion of Trade and Economic Cooperation' and recognising the need for "balanced trade".
Talks had collapsed in Geneva in July last year after India, among others, opposed agriculture subsidies offered by rich nations to their farmers on the grounds that this distorts trade by making produce of developing countries costly. The negotiators will meet for a week beginning September 14.
The Commerce Ministry wants the Reserve Bank to reduce interest rate for dollar credit in its forthcoming monetary policy to help sustain the fledgling recovery in the exports sector.
Ahead of the third quarter monetary policy review by the Reserve Bank later this month, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma has opposed monetary tightening, saying fund flows to the industry have not caused food inflation.
The Obama administration has not received any specific assurances from India that it will help carry the developing countries with it to help successfully complete the stalled Doha Development Agenda, but the fact that New Delhi is hosting the World Trade Organization ministerial meeting exudes optimism in this regard, US Trade Representative Ron Kirk has acknowledged
Angry members of the Congress and other opposition parties forced adjournments of the proceedings as they questioned the NOTA provision for these elections.
Ahead of unveiling the Foreign Trade Policy, Commerce Minister Anand Sharma on Wednesday said the government was looking at cooperating with states to bring down transaction costs to make exports more competitive. India's exports have been on a downslide since October 2008.
This accord marks the success of India's Look East Policy and is the first with a trading bloc.
This accord marks the success of India's Look East Policy and is the first with a trading bloc.
Commerce minister Anand Sharma had taken up the treaty when he was in the US in June. The two are also trying to bridge differences on the investment protection treaty.
In her condolence message for Patel, who served as her political secretary for years and was the All India Congress Committee treasurer, party chief Sonia Gandhi said, 'In Shri Ahmed Patel, I have lost a colleague, whose entire life was dedicated to the Congress Party.'
India's exports, after declining for over a year, are expected to improve in the coming months even as global slowdown continues, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said on Wednesday.
After the heat it faced on climate change stand for the Copenhagen summit, the government on Tuesday came under scanner as the Opposition felt that India might come under US pressure on the trade talks in WTO.
In an open letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and to Union Commerce Minister Anand Sharma, the industry body has outlined its view on the climate change negotiations based on Indian industry's feedback and called for the prime minister to urge the developed world to provide technology transfer and funds to help mitigate the crisis.
The senior leader said there an all-round support for Sonia and Rahul Gandhi is "apparent to anyone who is not blind".
Senior Indian Foreign Service officials Sharat Sabharwal and Meera Shankar will be the next envoys to Pakistan and the United States respectively. Sabharwal, Special Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs, will succeed High Commissioner Satyabrata Pal, who reaches superannuation on February 28. Shankar, India's Ambassador to Germany, will succeed Ronen Sen in Washington.
Doesn't matter if Enron or Lehman didn't tell the truth - they aren't Indians, says Sunanda K Datta-Ray.
Replying to supplementaries in Rajya Sabha during Question Hour, commerce minister Anand Sharma said, "There can be no negative impact of organised retailing on unorganised sector as 96 per cent of retail business is in unorganised sector.
The fascists in control of our nation, are afraid of the voices of our brave students. Today's violence in JNU is a reflection of that fear, Rahul Gandhi said in a tweet
In his attempt to revive a beleaguered Congress, Rahul Gandhi is trying to bring in new leadership in the form of Rajeev Gowda and BK Hari Prasad, whose names have been nominated for the Rajya Sabha, says Renu Mittal.
"Our government is fully committed to an early breakthrough in the Doha agreement based on the December 2008 draft texts in agriculture and industrial goods. It must be a balanced agreement that addresses the legitimate concerns of developing countries," Commerce Minister Anand Sharma said.
Commerce Minister Anand Sharma has issued several signals about his government's commitment to conclude the Doha talks, saying it is a priority issue for New Delhi. While many industrialised countries, including some developing nations, praised Sharma for adopting a conciliatory stance to break the 'impasse,' other members in the developing world are apprehensive about New Delhi's stance, especially its discussions with the US trade representative, trade envoys said.
Raising the issue, Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said the prime minister should come to the House and clarify on what he said, as his charges that his predecessor was "conspiring" with Pakistan was "a big issue."
New Delhi is witnessing a spurt of political activity over the Goods and Services Tax Bill.
Union Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma has warned countries trying to introduce protectionist measures that this would not only be counter-productive, but also deepen the recession and delay recovery.
Sheela Bhatt explores and explains the Rahul Gandhi phenomenon and what it means for the Congress party and the nation's politics.
The recession hit US today said it wants to enhance dialogue with India on key trade policy issues, including the bilateral investment treaty under negotiation.
Faced with slump in demand in key markets such as the US and Europe, India's exports plunged by 30 per cent in May as per the quick estimates, given by commerce secretary G K Pillai. The final figures will be released on July 1. Exports fell the most in 14 years by 33.2 per cent in April to $10.74 billion in April 2009-10, from $16.08 billion a year ago.
The government's disinvestment programme made a muted re-start with the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approving the part-sale of its stake in two power companies -- NTPC and Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam -- but postponing a decision on the overall disinvestment policy.
Data on primary and fuel items would continue to be released on weekly basis.
