Exporters can now avail Rs 500 cr sops

Exporters can start availing sops worth an estimated Rs 500 crore that were announced by the government last week under the Market Linked Focus Product Scheme (MLFPS) and Focus Product Scheme (FPS).

The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has issued a notification in this regard, stating that exporters can avail the benefits on their shipments with effect from January 1, 2011.

On February 11, the government had announced fiscal incentives worth Rs 500 crore for exporters of select products to countries to help them cope with the uneven global recovery, particularly in Europe.

Under the MLFPS, exporters get duty credit of 3% on the value of their consignments, while under the FPS, the exporters avail duty credit of 5%.

The sectors that will benefit from the Commerce Ministry's initiative include agri-products, chemicals, engineering, electronics, plastics and textiles. Over 617 products will get the benefit of the sops.

The exporters will get duty benefits for shipments to 15 countries, including Australia, Brazil, New Zealand, China and Japan.

In addition, the government will provide a 5% duty incentive on six additional products, like oil cakes and coffee products, under the Vishesh Krishi and Gram Udyog Yojana.

Despite economic problems in Western markets, India's exports grew by a healthy 32.5% year-on-year to $20.6 billion in January.

During the April-January period this fiscal, the country's shipments went up by 29.4% to $184.6 billion.