Page 8 - India Imports

Rising imports, demand slowdown ahead of polls weigh on Indian steelmakers

Imports from China have surged 88 per cent in the April to February period of the current financial year, which has "majorly impacted" domestic steel

Here's how the US lobbied India to reverse laptop licensing policy

US officials have often been concerned about India's sudden policy changes which they say create an uncertain business environment

Significant ramp up in capacities to help achieve $40 bn exports target

Steps such as significant ramp up in production capacities, and skilling of workforce will help achieve USD 40 billion garment exports target by 2030, AEPC said on Tuesday. Apparel Export Promotion Council of India (AEPC) Chairman Sudhir Sekhri said skilled workers like tailors and quality checkers are still not sufficient as during the peak season they go to their native villages thereby creating shortage. "Our target to reach USD 40 billion of RMG (readymade garments) export by 2030 can be a reality and my duty is to take every possible step to reach this target," Sekhri said. He said "we need to ramp up our capacities as the export houses in India are still unable to handle core/basic products which are required in huge quantities". He added that the council is also focused on skilling the workforce. "We are creating about 150,000 skilled workers every year but it is still not enough. To attain the growth that we are targeting, we need to empower our workforce with skills," he

Despite shrinking discounts, Russian crude flow to India may continue

Russia's share of Indian crude imports rose to 32 percent in February after recent dips

India, four-nation EFTA set to sign free trade agreement on Sunday

India and the four-nation European bloc EFTA will sign a free trade agreement on Sunday with an aim to boost two-way trade in goods, services and investments, an official said. The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) members are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland. The pact received approval from the Union Cabinet on March 7, the official said. India and EFTA have been negotiating the pact, officially dubbed as Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA), since January 2008 to boost economic ties. The agreement has 14 chapters, including trade in goods, rules of origin, intellectual property rights (IPRs), trade in services, investment promotion and cooperation, government procurement, technical barriers to trade, and trade facilitation. EFTA has 29 free trade agreements (FTAs) with 40 partner countries, including Canada, Chile, China, Mexico, and Korea. Under free trade pacts, two trading partners significantly reduce or eliminate customs duties on the maximum

Europe's higher defence expenditure may hit exports

To find more resources to fund higher defence expenditure, Europe may have to raise taxes or cut government spending on welfare and other development activities

New US sanctions may curb Indian imports of Russian coal, say traders

The latest US sanctions also include Russia's payment system, financial institutions and energy production

Govt should talk more on its steps to protect farmer interests

The WTO Agreement on Agriculture (AoA) was one of the many agreements that were negotiated during the Uruguay Round and the option available was to accept all the agreements or none

India to sign billion dollar deal to extend LNG imports from Qatar

India is likely to sign on Tuesday a multi-billion dollar deal to extend LNG imports from Qatar till 2048 at rates that are lower than current prices, sources said. Petronet LNG Ltd will sign the deal with QatarEnergy to extend import of 7.5 million tonne a year on sidelines of India Energy Week here. Sources said the price will be "significantly' lower than current price. Petronet currently imports 8.5 million tonne a year of LNG from Qatar under two contracts. The first 25-year deal is to expire in 2028 and is now being extended for 20 additional years. The second deal for 1 million tonne a year entered into in 2015, will be negotiated separately, sources said. India, the world's third biggest energy consumer, sees natural gas as a transition fuel for migrating to net zero carbon emissions by 2070. As part of this, the government is targeting to raise the share of natural gas in the country's energy mix to 15 per cent by 2030 from 6.3 per cent now. Sources said the current deal

No immediate impact of US decision to pause LNG export permits: Officials

Officials however said major LNG routes into India do not cross the main maritime area affe ted Houthi strikes in and around the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden

AstraZeneca to import critical drugs to India, focus on cancer therapies

AstraZeneca is currently conducting 50 clinical trials in India

Red Sea route accounts for 50% country's exports, 30% of imports: Report

The impact of the ongoing crisis around the Red Sea shipping route, which accounts for 50 per cent of the country's exports and 30 per cent of imports last fiscal, will vary depending on the industry, according to a report. The crisis in the Red Sea shipping route began after Yemen-based Houthi rebels launched frequent attacks on commercial shipping vessels plying through the route in November as a fallout of the Israeli-Palestinian war, which started in early October 2023. Currently, the US and British forces are also engaged in counter-attacks on the militants. Domestic companies use the Red Sea route through the Suez Canal to trade with Europe, North America, North Africa and part of the Middle East. Last fiscal, these regions accounted for 50 per cent of the country's exports worth Rs 18 lakh crore and 30 per cent of imports worth Rs 17 lakh crore. The country's overall merchandise trade was Rs 94 lakh crore last fiscal, with 68 per cent in value and 95 per cent in volume being

With online monitoring system going live, PC imports turn a trickle in Nov

Inbound shipments drop on monthly and yearly bases

Overall imports down 4% but shipments from Russia, China up: Govt data

Overall exports, meanwhile, increased 0.9 per cent, according to the data compiled by the commerce department

Decision on laptops and tablets import system after September data

In October last year, India put in place an import management system under which importers of these products have to seek authorisation from the government

Domestic steel vacuum bottle makers urge govt to check imports from China

The All India Steel Bottle Association (AISBA) has urged the government to take immediate measures to check the imports of sub-standard and cheap steel vacuum flasks into India. The imports of vacuum steel bottles from China and other countries are on the rise and the country has seen a 35 per cent increase in imports of the product from 2019-20 to 2022-23, the industry body said citing an official data. Bharat Agarwal, Treasurer of AISBA, also suggested the government not to extend import relaxation under a BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards) order which restricts quality approvals to such products beyond January 14, 2024. As per the order, he said, "January 14 is the last date by when the products getting imported are to be approved by the BIS". The products are not as per the BIS standards, hence the government must not extend the relaxation considering the issues faced by local manufacturers who have invested around Rs 1,500 crore in the Indian market, he said. "We have also not

War, weather put global ocean shippers on notice for rough seas in 2024

Maersk on Friday joined other major ocean carriers in rerouting ships away from the Red Sea to avoid missile and drone attacks in an area that leads to the vital Asia-Europe Suez Canal shortcut

USTR Tai to visit New Delhi next week for US-India trade policy forum meet

US Trade Representative Katherine Tai is scheduled to travel to New Delhi next week and will co-chair the ministerial-level meeting of the United States-India Trade Policy Forum with Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal. Ambassador Tai will travel to India from January 12-14 and begin her trip with a meeting with Goyal. She is also scheduled to meet Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar later. On January 13, Tai will meet with civil society representatives, business leaders, and stakeholders to discuss the Biden-Harris Administration's engagement and commitment to fostering closer ties between the two countries. Tai's visit marks the first trip to India in the new year by a senior Biden administration official. Tai and Goyal will co-chair the 14th ministerial-level meeting of the United States-India Trade Policy Forum (TPF). During this year's meeting, Tai and Goyal will discuss a broad set of issues to enhance the resiliency of the trade relationship, including ...

Indian medtech industry urges govt action to reduce import dependency

According to the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) report from August 2023, the Indian medical devices industry has the potential to expand from $12 billion today to $50 billion by 2030

Govt considering anti-dumping duty on circuit boards imported from China

The commerce ministry's arm DGTR has recommended imposition of anti-dumping duty on imports of printed circuit boards imported from China, Hong Kong for five years to protect the domestic industry from cheap inbound shipments. The Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) has recommended the duty after conducting an investigation on the dumped imports of these boards from these two countries. The PCBs (printed circuit boards) are assembled with electronic components like transistors, resistors, and capacitors. It is used in cars, telephones, ovens, toys, televisions, computers, and lighting solutions. "The authority recommends imposition of anti-dumping duty on the imports of the subject goods originating in or exported from China and Hong Kong for a period of five years...," the DGTR's notification has said. It added that imposition of the duty would not affect the availability of the product to the customers. The Indian Printed Circuit Association has filed an application for