Page 6 - Commerce Ministry

Goyal states restoring Diamond Imprest Licence for gems, jewellery sector

Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal on Saturday announced restoration of Diamond Imprest Licence, which allows import duty exemption on cut and polished diamonds up to a specified limit. The gems and jewellery exporters were demanding for this licence. In the absence of this licence, the cut and polished diamonds were getting imported in Dubai and getting assorted there and re-exported, impacting India's exports and jobs in the sector. The minister announced the restoration of the licence during a session at the India International Jewellery Show (IIJS) 2024 here. It was organised by the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC). "Shri Piyush Goyal, Minister of Commerce and Industry announced the introduction of the Diamond Imprest Licence," the GJEPC said in a statement. The licence allows eligible exporters to import cut and polished diamonds, including semi-processed, half-cut, and broken diamonds. Exporters can import diamonds up to 5 per cent of their average turnover

India's toy exports dip to $152 million in FY24 due to global headwinds

Union Minister Jitin Prasada informed Rajya Sabha that India's toy imports were recorded at $65 million in 2023-24

Commerce ministry developing e-platform to connect exporters, MSMEs, govt

The government on Tuesday said it is developing a trade connect e-platform to connect exporters, MSMEs and entrepreneurs with various stakeholders including Indian missions abroad, export promotion councils, and other partner government agencies. Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Jitin Prasada said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha that the platform will provide information on trade events taking place in different parts of the world, benefits available due to India's free trade agreements (FTAs) and other international trade-related information and data. "The government has initiated the creation of a trade connect e-platform to connect Indian exporters, MSMEs and entrepreneurs with various stakeholders including Indian Missions Abroad, Export Promotion Councils, and other partner government agencies," he said. Replying to a separate question, Prasada said that the major districts which are recording healthy export growth include Jamnagar, Kanchipuram, Mumbai, Pune, ..

Goyal shows hope, says right steps would make India $55 trn economy by 2047

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday expressed hope that steps such as focus on self-sufficiency, technology, stronger currency and fundamentals would help India become a USD 55-trillion economy by 2047. He said that the government is also focusing on areas such as moving from oil to electric vehicles and bringing quality in the manufacturing. He was replying to a question about feasibility to reach USD 55 trillion economy by 2047, which is the theme of K V Subramanian's book Bharat@100: Envisioning Tomorrow's Economic Powerhouse. "All this will collectively help us and a stronger currency...stronger fundamentals of economy from where we are today and hopefully will help us to (reach) USD 55 trillion economy," he said. Goyal added that EV focus, and reduction in imports of goods, oil seeds, rubber and pulses would help further strengthen the domestic currency.

DPIIT working on proposal to further tighten FDI rules in tobacco sector

The Commerce and Industry Ministry is working on a proposal to further tighten the foreign direct investment norms in the tobacco sector to check promotional activities and curb smuggling in the segment as firms are trying to circumvent norms, an official said. At present, foreign direct investment (FDI) is prohibited in the manufacturing of cigars, cheroots, cigarillos and cigarettes of tobacco or its substitutes. However, it is permitted in technology collaboration in any form, including licensing for franchise, trademark, brand name and management contracts in the tobacco sector. "FDI in tobacco is prohibited, and there is a need to control the sectors' promotional activities also. By doing promotion of those products, some companies try to create a system where smuggling increases," the official said. The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has circulated a draft note seeking the views of different ministries on the issue. The official added that ..

Hike in capital gains taxes won't adversely impact market sentiment: Goyal

The Commerce minister termed the criticisms against the hike in capital gains tax and securities transaction tax in derivatives trading as fear-mongering

Connectivity boost: Mizoram's Bhairabi-Sairang rly project nears completion

Sabyasachi De, Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) of Northeast Frontier Railway, said that this project, once completed, will be a game-changer in terms of communication and commerce.

India issued over 300 notifications since 2020 to promote food safety: Data

India has issued over 300 notifications since January 2020 to promote food safety, protect animals and plant health, and maintain the quality of products in the markets, according to the commerce ministry data. These notifications are issued under Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS) and Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT). Both are allowed under the World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules. TBT and SPS are non-tariff measures (NTMs). SPS is used by countries to set out basic rules for food safety and animal and plant health requirements. On the other hand, TBT deals with voluntary and mandatory standards and procedures to maintain the quality of products in the markets. When these regulations impose an unnecessary burden on trade, then they become non-tariff barriers (NTBs). The data showed that as many as 62 SPS and 247 TBT notifications were issued by India since January 2020. Since the formation of the WTO in 1995, the number of these regulations stood at 330 (SPS) and 434 (TB

Planning to establish centre for FTA negotiations, biz deals: Comm secy

The commerce ministry is looking at setting up a centre for negotiations, as this is an important skill set required in areas like free trade agreements and other business deals, a top government official said on Tuesday. Addressing students and faculties of the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) here, Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal said the centre can also help in creating a skill set among students of the institute. "Negotiations are going to be a very very important skill these days. When we do FTAs, negotiation skills are a very important tool, so we have to create one centre for negotiations. But that centre is not just supposed to do FTA (free trade agreement) negotiations, we have to get into the broader framework of negotiations, which also involves mergers and acquisitions and other business deals," Barthwal said. This centre will not be only for the government, but it will also be able to create skill sets among IIFT students. "So, that is the initiative, we will

Huge investment opportunities in India: Piyush Goyal to Swiss investors

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Monday held discussions with potential investors in Zurich and informed them about huge investment opportunities in India. The minister is in Switzerland regarding implementation of the India-EFTA Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA). On March 10, India and EFTA signed a free trade agreement under which New Delhi received an investment commitment of USD 100 billion in 15 years from the grouping while allowing several products such as Swiss watches, chocolates and cut and polished diamonds at lower or zero duties. The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) members are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland. Goyal engaged in a series of meetings, highlighting India's growth story and met leading business figures and potential investors, including representatives from MSC Cargo, the commerce and industry ministry said in a statement. They discussed potential collaborations and investment opportunities in various secto

Commerce min caps interest equalisation at Rs 1.66 cr per IEC for Jul-Aug

The commerce ministry on Wednesday clarified that the interest equalisation will be capped at Rs 1.66 crore per IEC (import-export code) for the July 1-August 31 period. Last month, the government extended the interest equalisation scheme (IES) on pre- and post-shipment rupee export credit for two months to promote the country's outbound shipments. The scheme, which provides exporters interest benefits, ended on June 30 this year. In a trade notice, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said the scheme extended on June 28, 2-24 is applicable only to MSME manufacturer exporters, who are eligible for IES benefit of 3 per cent. "The Interest Equalisation will be capped at Rs 1.66 crore per IEC for the period from 1st July 2024 to 31st August 2024," DGFT said. An Importer-Exporter Code (IEC) is a key business identification number, mandatory for export from India or import to India. No export or import shall be made by any person without obtaining an IEC unless specifically

Commerce ministry targets $100 billion electronics, textile exports by FY30

Pharmaceutical exports are targeted to double to $55 billion by FY30, from $27.84 billion in FY24, focusing on drug formulations and biologicals

Commerce ministry developing platform for registration, resolution of NTB's

The commerce ministry is developing a platform for registering non-tariff barriers (NTBs) faced by exporters and taking up with the concerned countries for their resolution, a senior official said. At present, there is an information gap on these barriers particularly for small items. "We are making a portal so that we can prioritise all the NTBs. Traders will register their complaints and the ministry will pursue that," the official said. In cases where the barrier is impacting a large volume of goods will be prioritised for their redressal and action-taking. Economic think tank GTRI in its report has stated that India needs to act in a fast-track manner for the removal of NTBs, being faced by domestic exporters in different countries like the US, China and Japan, to achieve export target of USD 1 trillion for goods by 2030. The Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) has suggested a two-pronged strategy to mitigate the influence of NTBs on exports. It asked for upgrading domest

India, Cambodia discuss investment treaty, UPI collab: Commerce ministry

India and South East Asian nation Cambodia are negotiating collaboration in UPI-based digital payment to promote trade and tourism, the commerce ministry said on Thursday. Both sides also deliberated upon diversification of the trade basket by identifying new products, bilateral investment treaty, recognition of Indian pharmacopoeia and collaboration in the pharma sector. These issues among others were discussed during the second meeting of the India-Cambodia Joint Working Group on Trade and Investment (JWGTI) here on Wednesday. Pharmacopoeia is a set of standards and quality specifications for ingredients, preparation and dosage forms of medicines manufactured, sold, consumed and exported in a country. Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission (IPC) is an autonomous institution under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare which sets standards for all drugs that are manufactured, sold and consumed in India. "The meeting discussed the progress of the ongoing efforts for collaboration in .

DGFT implements automated system for adhoc input-output norms fixation

The commerce ministry's arm DGFT on Thursday said it has implemented an automated system for adhoc input-output norms fixation for goods, with a view to promote ease of doing business for exporters. Exporters are allowed to import duty-free raw material or inputs for manufacturing goods for exports purposes only under an advance authorisation scheme. For this scheme, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has fixed standard input-output norms for almost all categories of products. Depending on these norms, a license is issued for duty-free imports. For example, if 10 Kg steel is required to make a 100 meter long pipe, license will be given under the scheme for duty-free import of 12 kg of steel as there would be some wastages also in the manufacturing process. DGFT provides a sector-wise list of Standard Input-Output Norms (SION), under which exporters may choose to apply for the license. Alternatively, exporters may apply for their own adhoc norms in cases where the SION

DGFT proposes review in export obligation period for certain sectors

The commerce ministry's arm DGFT on Tuesday proposed to amend the export obligation period for certain sectors such as spices, pharmaceuticals and tea, with a view to facilitate outbound shipments. The government has sought comments of all the concerned stakeholders on the proposed amendments within 15 days. The government allows duty free import of inputs used for manufacturing goods only for exports purposes under an advanced authorisation scheme, subject to export obligation period. Under this period, exporters have to ship the goods within a stipulated time period, failing which attracts penalties. To amend the export obligation period, the directorate general of foreign trade (DGFT) has proposed to amend an appendix of foreign trade policy's handbook of procedures 2023. According to the DGFT, there have been a lot of representations from export promotion councils (EPC) and exporters regarding review of the appendix. "This has been requested to facilitate exports and operate

Govt steps help boost toy making, exports; more work needed: DPIIT secy

Government measures such as mandatory quality control orders and increasing customs duty have helped boost exports of toys from India, but there is a need to do much more for the sector, a top official said on Wednesday. Secretary in the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) Rajesh Kumar Singh also indicated that they are diligently pursuing the proposal of extending fiscal incentives under the production-linked incentive scheme for the sector. He said that the industry is wondering about one proposed major policy intervention and "let me assure you that we are still pursuing that". In the interim Budget in February, the Commerce and Industry Ministry has recommended an outlay of Rs 3,489 crore for the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for toys to boost domestic manufacturing of the sector. As the scheme is yet to be cleared by the Union Cabinet, the interim Budget has made a token provision of Rs 1 lakh towards the scheme for 2024-25. The scheme a

Need to build on success of PLI schemes, recent FTAs: Piyush Goyal

Goyal was convening a review meeting with senior officers from the commerce and industry department

Piyush Goyal takes charge amid export decline and FDI contraction

Over the last decade, Goyal, 59, handled key and diverse portfolios, including power, renewable energy, coal, mines and railways during the first term of National Democratic Alliance (NDA)

Commerce Ministry to seek more funds for startups in upcoming Budget

The commerce and industry ministry may seek more funds for startups in the forthcoming Budget, to be announced by the new government, to promote innovation in the country, an official has said. The new government may announce the Budget for 2024-25 in July. The seed fund scheme, announced in April 2021 with a corpus of Rs 945 crore, will end in 2025, and the ministry may consider proposing a new scheme on similar lines. The seed fund scheme was aimed at providing financial assistance to startups for proof of concept, prototype development, product trials, market-entry, and commercialisation. The fund was divided into four years for providing seed funding to eligible startups through incubators across India. Easy availability of capital is essential for entrepreneurs at the early stages of growth of an enterprise, and the capital required at this stage often presents a make-or-break situation for startups with good business ideas, another official said. There are over 1.17 lakh ..