Page 7 - Import

Laptop can be quite a potent source of leakage: Goyal on import restriction

Union minister of commerce and industry Piyush Goyal on Thursday said that there are security concerns involved in the decision to restrict import of laptops. The minister said that there will be no disruption in the availability or the price and the government will be ready to engage with industry and look at other options also. "Here is an issue, which is a serious security matter. Even Tesla car is not allowed anywhere near where Xi Jinping (President of China) is present. Because they're very conscious of the risks of security, even for a car being present in the vicinity of the premier of China. India also has to protect ourselves from countries who are antagonistic to India," Goyal said. While speaking at an event of book launch of journalist Nalin Mehta, Goyal said that the present government is a listening and accessible government. "We are conscious that laptops are our continuous companion. Laptops are being used for all our privileged and confidential information. And th

Vegetable oil July imports up 46% to 1.7 mn tn due to palm oil shipments

India's vegetable oil imports increased by 46 per cent to 17.71 lakh tonnes in July this year on rise in palm oil shipments, industry body SEA said on Monday. The country's vegetable oil imports stood at 12.14 lakh tonnes in the year-ago period, it said. Similarly, during the first nine months of the 2022-23 oil year (November-October), the overall import of vegetable oils increased by 23 per cent to 122.54 lakh tonnes from 99.74 lakh tonnes in the same period last year. Vegetable oil imports comprise both edible and non-edible oils. According to the Solvent Extractors Association (SEA), edible oil imports rose 46 per cent to 17.55 lakh tonnes during July this year, when compared to 12.05 lakh tonnes in the year-ago period. Non-edible oil imports too increased to 15,999 tonnes from 9,069 tonnes in the said period. With sharp reduction in domestic prices of edible oils, "demand has returned which is evident from the rising import in spite of better domestic availability reflecting

NCCF to sell imported tomatoes from Nepal in UP at Rs 70/kg during weekend

About 10 tonnes of tomatoes imported from Nepal are in transit and the commodity will be distributed in Uttar Pradesh during the weekend at a subsidised rate of Rs 70 per kg, a top official of cooperative NCCF said on Friday. Since July 11, the National Cooperative Consumers' Federation of India Limited (NCCF) is selling tomatoes at a discounted rate on behalf of the central government to boost domestic availability and contain prices. So far, NCCF has sold 9,38,862 kg of tomatoes in Delhi-NCR, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. "Imports are being undertaken by traders. About 10 tonnes of tomatoes are under transit. NCCF will sell imported tomatoes in Uttar Pradesh at a discounted rate during this weekend," NCCF Managing Director Anice Joseph Chandra told PTI. The imported tomatoes will be sold in Uttar Pradesh at a discounted rate of Rs 70 per kg. The imports will be moderated depending on the local availability and price movement, she said. This is for the first time India is importing

Govt to come up with 60 QCOs to curb imports of sub-standard goods

The government will come up with 60 quality control orders (QCOs) this year for products such as consumer goods, rubber, paper and light engineering items with an aim to contain imports of sub-standard goods and boost domestic manufacturing, a senior government official said on Friday. Secretary in Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) Rajesh Kumar Singh said they are issuing these orders "fairly extensively" and so far 33 QCOs for over 127 products such as ACs, refrigerators, pipes, and safety valves have been issued. "Right now, we are processing 60 new QCOs in association with BIS. These are crucial not only for the safety of consumers but also to improve quality standards," he told reporters here. Speaking at the media briefing, Joint Secretary in DPIIT Sanjiv said these orders are issued for goods like smart meters, nuts, bolts and fasteners. Violation of the law can attract a penalty of up to two years of imprisonment or with fine of at least Rs 2 la

India starts importing tomatoes from Nepal amid record spike in prices

The first lot of imports are likely to reach by Friday in Varanasi, Lucknow and Kanpur cities in northern India, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman told the parliament

Imports from China for at least 25 commodity groups rose in FY22-23

Imports of electronics from China grew 14 per cent year-on-year in fiscal 2023, and imports of organic chemicals imports rose 9 per cent

TMSEp494: Station revamp, AI in entertainment, markets, import substitution

What does the revamp of 508 railway stations mean? How's AI disrupting the entertainment world? How did India Inc fare in Q1 earnings season? What is import substitution? Answers here

MeitY officials to meet OEMs on Tuesday over import restriction concerns

The import of electronics products, such as small tablets, laptops, and all-in-one PCs, will now require a valid licence

Curb on imports may have cascading effect on second-hand laptop prices

All prominent PC companies like Lenovo, Apple, Dell and HP import laptops to meet the demand in the country

India's July edible oil imports hit record at 1.76 mn metric tonnes

India's average monthly edible oil imports in 2021/22 marketing year were 1.17 mn tonnes, trade body SEA said. In June, India imported 1.3 million tonnes of edible oils

Govt rolls out quality norms for nuts, bolts to curb sub-standard imports

The government on Monday said it has issued mandatory quality norms for nuts, bolts and fasteners to curb the import of sub-standard goods and boost domestic manufacturing of these products. A notification in this regard was issued by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) on July 21. These items under The Bolts, Nuts and Fasteners (Quality Control) Order, 2023, cannot be produced, sold/traded, imported and stocked unless they bear the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) mark, the notification stated. Now, manufacturing, storing and sale of non-BIS certified products are prohibited as per the BIS Act, 2016. Violation of the provision of the BIS Act can attract imprisonment of up to two years or a fine of at least Rs 2 lakh for the first offence. In case of second and subsequent offences, the fine will increase to a minimum of Rs 5 lakh and extend up to 10 times the value of goods or articles. "It will come into effect six months from the date of publicat

Import restrictions on gold jewellery not applicable for SEZ units

The government has clarified that import restrictions on certain gold jewellery and articles are not applicable for units in the special economic zones (SEZs). On July 12, the government, through a notification, imposed these restrictions on certain gold jewellery and articles. In a policy circular, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said it has received representations from SEZs units highlighting issues being faced by them due to these restrictions. Accordingly, it is "clarified" that imports of these products by SEZ units "are outside the purview" of the July 12 notification, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said. These zones are treated as foreign entities in terms of provisions related to customs.

Indian Oil signs long term LNG import deals with ADNOC LNG, TotalEnergies

TotalEnergies would supply 0.8 million tpy LNG to IOC under the 10 year deal, it said. TotalEnergies would supply LNG to IOC from its global portfolio

Edible oil imports up by 39.31% to 13.11 lakh tonnes in June on high demand

India's import of edible oils grew by 39.31 per cent in June to 13.11 lakh tonnes compared to the same month last year due to increased demand, industry body Solvent Extractors' Association of India (SEA) said on Friday. Edible oil import in June 2022 stood at 9.41 lakh tonnes, SEA said in a statement. The overall imports of vegetable oils (edible and non-edible) grew by 49 per cent to 13.14 tonnes in June compared to 9.91 lakh tonnes in the corresponding month last year. The imports consisted of 2,900 tonnes of non-edible oils which are mainly imported by soap and oleo-chemical industries. With a sharp reduction in domestic prices of edible oils, demand has returned which is evident from the rising import in spite of better domestic availability, the SEA added. The import of crude palm oil recovered to 4.66 lakh tonnes in June compared to 3.48 lakh tonnes in the previous month. The import of RBD Palmolien jumped to 2.17 lakh tonnes from 85,000 tonnes in the previous month, ...

India-China trade witnesses first signs of slowdown in years: Report

The India-China trade, which in recent years rose sharply despite bilateral tensions over the border dispute, showed the first signs of a slowdown in years falling by 0.9 per cent in the first half of this year. This came as China's overall foreign trade declined by about five per cent as its economy struggled to recover from COVID blues. China's exports to India in the first half of this year totalled USD 56.53 billion compared to USD 57.51 billion last year registering a decline of 0.9 per cent, according to the data released by Chinese customs on Thursday. India's exports to China during the same period totalled USD 9.49 billion compared to USD 9.57 billion last year. The trade deficit in the first half of 2023 too declined significantly to USD 47.04 compared to USD 67.08 billion last year. Last year was a bumper year for India-China trade as it touched an all-time high of USD 135.98 billion despite the continued chill in the bilateral ties over the military standoff in eastern

India's consumption is rising as global prices have eased: Gas importer

Eased gas prices, triggered by the built-up of stocks by European nations, is boosting gas consumption in the price-sensitive Indian market

Export, import cost may rise from Jan 2027 from decarbonisation measures

Decarbonisation measures for the global shipping industry to reduce carbon emissions in the coming years may increase the cost of doing exports and imports from January 2027, a report by think tank GTRI said on Monday. The 175-member International Maritime Organization (IMO) notified its strategy on July 7 to decarbonise the global shipping sector and achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, the Global Trade Research Institute (GTRI) said It added that IMO has also set interim targets for reducing emissions by 20-30 per cent by 2030 and 70-80 per cent by 2040, compared to 2008. It added that IMO has also suggested the shipping industry to switch to cleaner fuel. "By 2030 cleaner fuel must account for a minimum 5 per cent total fuel use. IMO will notify detailed measures next year. While IMO recommendations are not legally binding, countries are expected to achieve the targets set. This year, few countries pushed for a flat tax of USD 100 per tonne of carbon emission by ships, yet IMO ..

India's April-May finished steel imports from China at six-year high

In April and May, China emerged as the second-biggest steel exporter to India, selling 0.2 million metric tons of the alloy, up 62% from the same period a year earlier

Importers must hedge near-term exposures on dollar rally risk, say analysts

The greenback is projected to strengthen against most Asian currencies in the July-September quarter, with a rate hike by the Fed at its July meeting now a near certainty

Decision to cut import duty on US apples to harm Himachal farmers: Cong

The Congress on Tuesday condemned the central government's decision to reduce import duty on Washington (American) apples from 70 per cent to 50 per cent and said it would harm the interest of farmers of Himachal Pradesh. In a statement issued here, All India Congress Committee (AICC) spokesperson Kuldeep Singh Rathore, who is also the sitting Congress MLA from Theog assembly seat (apple belt), said that the decision would cause harm to the apple industry of Himachal Pradesh. "The apple growers are already under severe crisis due to an increase in the production cost following a rise in prices of pesticides, fungicides, labour and other packing materials caused due to inflation under the BJP rule," he added. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also failed to keep his promise of increasing import duty on apples up to 100 per cent as promised during the election campaign in Himachal Pradesh in the previous Lok Sabha Election campaign, he said. He demanded that the Union government shoul