“Textile industrialists will have to acquire fabric patents and venture into value addition to make ‘Brand Surat,’” said Roop Rashi, the Government of India’s textile commissioner, at the launch of the ‘Textile Week,’ organised by the Southern Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s (SGCCI) Global Fabric Resource and Research Centre (GFRRC) here on Monday. In his presentation, SGCCI president, Ashish Gujarat said, “At present, the government has approved a single Common Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP). Under the Integrated Power Development Scheme (IPDS), we demand another seven CETPs to be approved for the Surat region. We also demand a reduction in the import duty on the capital goods. There is an urgent need to resolve the issue of BIS Certification of KRM regarding the polyester yarn.” “Surat’s textile sector produces high-quality fabrics in a variety of qualities,” said Roop Rashi, India’s textile commissioner. Thus, I encourage textile companies to patent their products and pursue value addition to establish Surat as a brand. Efforts will be made to suit the textile industry’s requirements.” Rashi urged manufacturers to maintain the trend, noting that Surat’s textile sector has reached new heights thanks to the experience of industry veterans and the dedication of the younger generation. “Surat’s textile entrepreneurs will have to think creatively rather than defensively. The PLI and MITRA programmes have the potential to help textile entrepreneurs leapfrog Bangladesh and Vietnam. The market is going to be excellent, and everyone must proceed with vigour and zeal. Never sacrifice quality and enhance your engagement in cluster schemes,” Rashi said. The Textile Ministry has proposed that the Finance Ministry continue the A-TUF scheme and fund allocation until the instructions for the Textile Technology Development Scheme (TTDS) scheme are issued, according to Rashi. In addition, the ministry has recommended to the Finance Ministry a 25-30% subsidy under the new TTDS programme. The SGCCI’s request for seven further CETPs will be given to the relevant ministry, and the SGCCI has been asked to provide information on the BIS certification of KRM on polyester yarn. Deputy Director-General, Usha Paul said, “There is a need to concentrate on expanding the Indian market for export. Textile industrialists should enroll in the PIL and MITRA schemes to grab the market share from Bangladesh and Vietnam.” AP Verma, Additional Textile Commissioner, guided the textile entrepreneurs on “Innovation in Textile Manufacturing”. “Even a tiny business owner may innovate,” Verma stated. “Innovation can be accomplished with any material or machinery that is accessible. Production will need to continue with the selection of specialised fibres and fabrics. Cost-cutting can be used in place of cost-saving only when the product is recyclable.” Verma called on the textile entrepreneurs to move in the direction of manufacturing sportswear and medical textiles following a robust demand in the international market. Bharat Gandhi, chairman of FIASWI and former president of SGCCI delivered his keynote address, Girdhargopal Mundra, chairman of GFRRC gave information regarding the textile week, and former president of SGCCI, Praful Shah conducted the entire programme. Former president of SGCCI, Mahendra Kajiwala also delivered his keynote address. Himanshu Bodawala, President-Elect of SGCCI gave the vote of thank.
Source: APN Live
India-UK FTA negotiations are going on and even if an early harvest agreement is signed, textiles will be part of it, says U P Singh, textiles secretary Free trade agreements with the European Union and the UK will be “big-ticket" deals for the textiles sector with the potential to level the playing field for the Indian industry visà-vis competitors such as Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Vietnam, textiles secretary U P Singh said in an interview. Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Vietnam enjoy duty-free access to the UK and the EU, whereas Indian textiles attract an import duty of 9.5%. India has been doing much better than other textile exporters in markets such as the US where it is not at a duty disadvantage. On inverted duty structure in textiles (where duties on raw material are higher than those on finished products, thus impacting domestic manufacturing), Singh said there is a need for correction but increasing GST to 12% or 18% on the entire value chain is not a solution when cotton prices are at a record high. Edited excerpts: We are doing a raft of FTAs this year with a special focus on textile. Which markets could benefit us the most? The EU and UK are the two big-ticket deals that we are looking forward to which will boost the domestic textile sector. The deal with the UK could happen in less than six months. Out of the two, the EU will be the most beneficial for the domestic sector as it is one of the largest markets for textiles. India-UK FTA negotiations are going on and even if an early harvest agreement is signed, textiles will be part of it. Sri Lanka is a major textiles exporter but the economic crisis has hit production. Are we seeing new opportunities and will the gains be permanent? China is vacating several markets. The West’s China plus one strategy is working in India’s favour. The West does not want to put all of its eggs in a single basket. Another factor in our favour is the situation in Sri Lanka. Tirupur exporters are getting a few of the orders that were earlier with Sri Lanka. However, making those customers permanent won't be easy. The world is looking at sustainability, be it the adherence to labour laws, environmental adherence or even pollution. We have issues in the power loom sector and there is a problem of container shortage. Inverted duty structure has been a long-standing issue in the textile sector. What is the way out? The inverted duty structure should of course be removed. But imposing a 12% or 18% tax on the entire value chain is not a solution. The rates have to be reasonable because cotton prices are already very high and there is an impact on the domestic market because of the same. But yes, the decision will be taken by the GST council and not us. Can PLI (production linked incentive) schemes solve the textile industry’s problems? I won't say PLI will take care of all the objectives. There are 3-4 steps that the government has taken to offset the disadvantage that we are at. Through PLI we are trying to boost our presence in man-made fibre and technical textile. The government launched the National Technical Textile Mission, PM-MITRA textile parks which will bring scale to the sectors. Through the Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies and Remissions of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products, we are trying to ensure that only goods are exported and not taxes.
Source: Live Mint
The EU, including the UK, was India’s largest destination (as a bloc) in FY20, with a 17% share in the country’s overall exports. Weeks before the resumption of trade talks with the EU, commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday met Wopke Hoekstra, deputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands, and “discussed business and trade opportunities”. Hoekstra has been an advocate of the India-EU free trade agreement (FTA), which, he has said, would provide more opportunities for India towards the whole European continent, and that the Dutch government could play a role in facilitating that. “A deeper Indo-Dutch cross-sectoral cooperation will further strengthen & fortify the multi-faceted India-EU engagements,” Goyal tweeted after the meeting. The meeting came a day after India and the EU on Monday decided to set up a trade and technology council to boost bilateral ties, as the bloc’s president Ursula von der Leyen met Prime Minister Narendra Modi here. New Delhi and Brussels will resume serious negotiations for the FTA in June after a gap of almost nine years. The move underscores growing co-operation between New Delhi and Brussels, as the US is the only other country that has a technical agreement with the EU, along the lines of the one signed with India now. The council is aimed at providing political-level oversight of the entire spectrum of the India-EU ties and to ensure closer coordination. After 16 rounds of talks between 2007 and 2013, formal talks for the FTA were stuck over stark differences, as the EU insisted that India scrap or slash hefty import duties on sensitive products such as automobiles, alcoholic beverages and dairy products. Similarly, India’s demand included greater access to the EU market for its skilled professionals. However, both the sides have now decided to take the negotiation to its logical conclusion. The EU, including the UK, was India’s largest destination (as a bloc) in FY20, with a 17% share in the country’s overall exports. Without the UK, the EU accounted for about 15% (or $57 billion) of India’s exports until February last fiscal.
Source: Financial Express
Secretary, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Shri Anurag Jain said the number of patents granted has grown five times in a matter of seven years since the Government adopted the Intellectual Property policy in 2016. Shri Jain said the number of Trademarks registered has also increased four-fold during the period. He was addressing the Inaugural Session of the day-long conference on "Leveraging India's Demographic Dividend through IP" here today, organized by the DPIIT and FICCI on the occasion of this World IP Day. Shri Jain said the government has taken a series of measures, including reducing the number of forms for trademarks and patents, to further strengthen the country's IPR (Intellectual Property Rights) regime. He said that in trade marks, there used to be 74 forms but now they have been reduced to just eight and similarly for patents, all the forms were scrapped and now there is only one form. Shri Jain said, as various Government Departments roll out Vision @2047 for the next 25 years during the Amritkaal, the most important driving factor will be Knowledge and Innovation. “Only those industries which invest in Knowledge and Innovation would survive. And for Knowledge and Innovation to survive, Intellectual Property becomes a very, very important tool,” said Shri Jain, adding, “And another important aspect to that is the Startups.” Shri Jain said since the Startup initiative was launched in 2016, in the space of six years we have grown to be the third largest Startup ecosystem. Last year, in the number of Unicorns created, we overtook China and we were the second highest. “We have reached a level of 80 Startups getting registered every day in our country, which is the highest in the world,” he said. Shri Jain said we need to inculcate seeds of IP in the minds of young people. Almost 4,300 institutions participated in about 400 programmes about IP awareness taken up by the Ministry, he said. “This has been included in the course of NCERT. Then there is a lot of engagement with the colleges,” said Shri Jain. “We have set up about 18 IPR chairs, and about 135 IPR cells have been created in various colleges and universities,” he added. During a panel discussion on “Making India’s Youth IP Savy,” Ms. Shruti Singh, Joint Secretary, DPIIT, highlighted that India has a young demography and to utilize its full potential, several revolutionary schemes have been implemented by the Government in providing assistance in securing rights and interests of innovator and creators. The government has always focussed on innovation driven development strategy and has been encouraging youth in all fields including technology or creative industry to build India’s firm foundations as an Innovation Hub and leverage IP to fuel the next round of value creation and growth, she said. In another panel discussion on “IP Commercialisation – Converting ideas into Assets,” Dr. Jatinder Kaur Arora said that IP Commercialization is a challenge because of a mismatch in priorities of states and industry leading to unmet needs of industry and then finding the solution. The discussion also noted that an IP intensive ecosystem can be further strengthened through building awareness and creative collaborations between industry and academia. The conference also discussed the aspect of “Unlocking the Creative Economy’s Potential” as the creative sector has a strong interface with popular media and culture and provides greater scope for youth entrepreneurship. Shri. Karan Thapar, Deputy Secretary, DPIIT, mentioned that the creative intensive industries have the potential to change the way content is perceived and commercialized to enhance economic output as well as create a niche industry that adds to the GDP of the nation and exploit global markets. During the event, the winners of the Photography contest organised by DPIIT were also announced. The photography contest was held on the theme of “Bharat ki Atulya Dharohar” to foster creativity and to invoke interest and awareness among general public and to showcase incredible treasures of our nation. The contest received entries from several photo enthusiasts from across the country. This year's theme of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) further substantiated India's vision to inculcate the culture of innovation and creativity in its ecosystem. All these initiatives further bolster our clarion call of "Creative India, Innovative India".
Source: PIB
The outbreak of the global pandemic has impacted Australia's investment in India to a degree consistent with trends elsewhere in Asia Australia expects to sign a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CEPA) with India by the year-end, which will include a deal on digital trade that it said will further facilitate bilateral trade. “Australia will also seek improved access for service suppliers, and modern investor protections to increase investor confidence and drive investment, with appropriate safeguards for governments’ rights to regulate. An agreement could facilitate digital trade by including modern and forward-looking rules which support the use of digital tools to enable trade,” according to the Australian government’s India Economic Strategy to 2035 update. The outbreak of the global pandemic has impacted Australia’s investment in India to a degree consistent with trends elsewhere in Asia. However, the total Australian investment stock in 2020 was comparable to 2018 levels, and over the five years to 2019 had a trend of 15.1 per cent growth, the update said. The report provides a five-year action plan to the Australian government to accelerate economic integration between India and Australia. Energy, tourism, education, and health are some of the key sectors mentioned in the document — India Economic Strategy to 2035 — that was first released in 2018. The latest report responds to evolving challenges and opportunities for both countries, including lessons learned throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, efforts to bolster supply chain resilience, India’s economic reform agenda and progress under the Australia-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. The report was launched weeks after India and Australia signed a free trade deal known as economic cooperation and trade agreement (ECTA). Under the agreement, Canberra will provide duty-free access in its market for over 95 per cent tariff lines. The deal will take close to four months to be implemented. The India-Australia trade deal is only crucial from an economic perspective but also for strategic reasons. India has entered into the trilateral Supply Chain Resilience Initiative (SCRI) arrangement with Australia and Japan, which aims to enhance the resilience of supply chains in the Indo-Pacific Region and develop dependable sources of supply and explore other countries who could join in the initiative, capacity building, promotion of domestic manufacturing. India has also formed the Quad alliance with the US, Australia, and Japan to further enhance cooperation and develop partnership across issues of common concerns. Australia is the 17th largest trading partner of India and India is Australia’s 9th largest trading partner in the current fiscal. Bilateral trade in goods and services for both the countries is expected to rise from the existing $27.5 billion to $45 billion in five years.
Source: Business Standard
India-Australia Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement is going to strengthen not only the bilateral trade between the two countries but also improve India's image in the world post-RCEP, said a professor of a policy research institute. India had in November opted out of the 15-nation Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, which is touted as the world's largest trading bloc. "Australia-India ECTA is a great trade deal, which is going to strengthen not only bilateral trade between the two trade partners but also improve India's image post-RCEP," Research and Information System for Developing Countries professor Prabir De said in a round table discussion organised by the Bengal Chamber on Monday. India and Australia had on April 2 signed an economic cooperation and trade agreement under which Canberra would provide duty-free access in its market for over 6,000 broad sectors of India, including textiles, leather, furniture, jewellery and machinery. The agreement is likely to be implemented in about four months. During the round table discussion, Australian High Commission's Economic and Public Affairs Counsellor Hugh Boylan highlighted benefits of the deal, which would help in taking the bilateral trade from $27.5 billion at present to $45-50 billion in the next five years. This is the first trade agreement that India has signed with a developed economy after more than a decade. Australia is the 17th largest trading partner of India and India is Australia's 9th largest trading partner. The Bengal Chamber president Abraham Stephanos said it is important for businesses to understand the opportunities unlocking from the trade agreement and the chamber is actively acting as a facilitator.
Source: Times of India
The geopolitical scuttle due to the Russia-Ukraine crisis can probably be a blessing for India's Reserve Bank of India, giving it extra ammunition to seek dominance in the changing world order as alternate payment and settlement mechanisms are explored and finally put to test by nations though the central bank would have to tread the path cautiously, not risking being labelled an outlier, said SBI Research in its latest report. Moreover, Russia’s disconnect from trading partners in the world should create a void, which India would be able to fill in terms of exports. The deeper the sanctions go againsr Russia, the more the opportunities will open up for India in not only traditionally traded items such as pharmaceuticals, tea, rice, but also in new avenues such as medical devices, software/hardware, transport, machinery, mobile and telecom devices, chemicals, textiles, leather, ceramics and agriculture. "The proposed RBI / VEB (SDC) arrangement for Rupee-Ruble cross currency pairing (taking cue from the platform established in early 90s) could well be a harbinger of more concerted efforts to settle payments in non-dollar currencies among interested jurisdictions from BRICS or SAARC countries, say for a start, with more countries looking at India’s sovereign Financial Messaging Systems (SFMS), while also remaining connected with a central system like SWIFT. However, the vulnerability to cyber attacks and hacking would require a robust fire walling as also greater AML-CFT measures adoption," said Dr. Soumya Kanti Ghosh, Group Chief Economic Adviser at State Bank of India. According to Ghosh, RBI would do well to explore bilateral netting of trades / contracts, making actual transfers for outstanding amount only at periodic frequency while vying for making Rupee the base currency in settlements. RBI may look at ameliorating the indigenous SFMS system along the lines of Russian SPFS or Chinese CIPS (Cross border Inter bank Payment Systems), offering a secured and reliable financial messaging alternative to trading partners, leveraging its digital currency that is estimated to take centre stage in wholesale banking transactions going forward. The bouncing back of Ruble in recent days to almost pre-war levels, with Europe’s dependency on Russian energy being a catalyst, underpins the somewhat ineffectiveness of current sanctions apparent as Germany and Italy are likely to continue utilising the Gazprombank/Sberbank lifeline inbuilt in SWIFT sanctions to thwart any negative impact on mammoth domestic energy procurements. "That should also anchor India’s quest to build a dedicated payment mechanism for energy related payment and settlements as a long-haul measure. The resurgence of the Rouble, primarily woven around Europe’s energy demands, should also acknowledge the steps taken by Russian Central Bank in anchoring the currency and their well-planned divergence from traditional currencies while logging enhanced gold reserves as more Russian banks could be cut off from the SWIFT. The US dollar has remained the natural choice of transaction and settlements for global trade (as per SWIFT data), driven primarily by the huge trust reposed in the Greenback, with ample liquidity, along with well developed independent legal system to settle disputes and some legacy from the days of Bretton Wood, stamping it as the ultimate store of value. This might change as more Central Banks seek a wider role at the tumultuous geo-political world stage. According to Kant, currencies like Renminbi and Rouble, with strong pitching by the respective regulators would look at forging new tie ups, luring non-west countries for non-dollar settlements at lucrative terms, eventually diverging from the usual preferences to a large extent. CBDCs could be a potential mechanism, with its failure-proof, low transactional cost model likely to promote settlements in wholesale banking soon. Customers can raise invoices and receive payments in designated bank accounts, through mirror accounts maintained by respective banks, at the central banks. "Already, select Central Banks’ forex reserves holding are signalling asset diversification assiduously built over the years, fortressing themselves from the economic eventualities of a lop-sided world of present. All the more a case for Indian regulators and policy makers, and bodies like FEDAI to seek equal, and appropriate footing for INR in the changing realms lest we lag behind in a crucial/critical area," said the report.
Source: Times of India
The IMF last week trimmed its FY23 India outlook by 80 basis points from an earlier forecast to 8.2%, citing the Ukraine war and risks from high commodity prices. Countries in the Asian region, including India, faces difficult policy trade-offs in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, as governments face the unenviable task of managing runaway inflation without upsetting growth dynamics, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Policymakers should, therefore, protect the most vulnerable from rising fuel and food costs while enacting economic reforms to boost long-term growth, it said in its regional economic outlook. A surge in global oil prices caused by the Ukraine crisis will be a drag on India’s growth and increase current account deficit while driving up inflation, it said, suggesting monetary tightening to curb price expectations. Anne-Marie Gulde-Wolf, acting director of the IMF’s Asia and Pacific Department, said accommodative fiscal stance is appropriate, supporting vulnerable households and putting focus on infra investments. “Well communicated monetary policy actions are needed, probably some monetary tightening,” she said. The IMF last week trimmed its FY23 India outlook by 80 basis points from an earlier forecast to 8.2%, citing the Ukraine war and risks from high commodity prices. “We see the difficult policy trade offs with policymakers supporting growth, while controlling inflation. We have seen that inflation has spilled out of the tolerance band, which is an outcome of war as the country is dependent on oil and commodity imports,” said Gulde-Wolf. India’s retail inflation breached the central bank’s tolerance limit for a third straight month in March and hit a 17-month high of 6.95%. She also cautioned that the Asian region faces a “stagflationary” outlook, as she cited the Ukraine crisis, rising commodity costs and a slowdown in China that have served to heighten uncertainties. Although the region’s trade and financial exposures to Russia and Ukraine are limited, its economies will be affected by higher commodity prices and slower growth in European trading partners in the wake of the war. Also, inflation is picking up when economic slowdown in China is pressuring regional growth. This is leading to the stagflationary outlook, with growth being lower than assumed earlier and inflation higher, Guide-Wolf said in an online conference in Washington. The headwinds to growth come at a time when policy space to respond is limited, GuldeWolf said, adding that Asian policymakers will face a difficult trade-off of responding to slowing growth and rising inflation. The US Fed’s interest rate hikes will also pose a challenge to Asian nations that have huge exposure to dollar-denominated debt. The IMF last week said it expects Asia’s economy to expand 4.9% this year, down 0.5 pps from the January forecast. Inflation in Asia is now expected to hit 3.4% in 2022, 1 pp higher than forecast in January, the multilateral body said.
Source: Financial Express
India’s GBM Fabrics, a manufacturer, wholesaler and exporter of dyeing fabric, digital printed fabric, dyed fabric and embroidery fabric, will showcase its range of products at the 21st edition of Yarnex yarn exhibition to be held in Mumbai from May 5-7, 2022. Yarnex will bring together manufacturers and suppliers of fibres, yarns and related services. GBM Fabrics will showcase ladies wear fabrics and garments at the event. Yarnex is being held alongside the F&A Show and Denim Expo, the organiser of the show said on its website. Having emerged as India’s leading event in the fibres and yarns space, Yarnex - India International Yarn Exhibition is poised to open its door at the Bombay Exhibition Centre, Mumbai, thereby serving the sourcing requirements of the textile value chain in the western region of the country
Source: Fibre 2 Fashion
Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) has signed a formal shareholder agreement for the $2 billion TA'ZIZ chemical joint venture in the UAE Billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) has signed a formal shareholder agreement for the $2 billion TA'ZIZ chemical joint venture in the UAE and inked a pact to collaborate with Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) in finding and producing conventional and unconventional resources. "Abu Dhabi Chemicals Derivatives Company RSC Ltd (TA'ZIZ) and RIL, have signed the formal shareholder agreement for the TA'ZIZ EDC and PVC project," the company said in a statement. TA'ZIZ is joint venture between ADNOC and sovereign wealth fund ADQ. Under the terms of a strategic agreement, Reliance and TA'ZIZ will build plants with the capacity to produce 940,000 tonnes per annum of Chlor-alkali, 1.1 million tonnes a year of ethylene dichloride and 360,000 tonnes per year of polyvinyl chloride at the TA'ZIZ Industrial Chemicals Zone. Chlor-alkali is used in water treatment and manufacture of textiles and metals, while ethylene dichloride is typically used to produce PVC, which has a wide range of applications across housing, infrastructure and consumer goods. "The TA'ZIZ EDC & PVC joint venture will construct and operate a Chlor-Alkali, Ethylene Dichloride (EDC) and Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) production facility, with a total investment of over $2 billion. "These chemicals will be produced in the UAE for the first time, unlocking new revenue streams and opportunities for local manufacturers to 'Make it in the Emirates'," the statement added. The formal shareholder agreement was signed by senior executives during a visit of Ambani, chairman and managing director of Reliance, to ADNOC headquarters During the visit, Ambani met Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and ADNOC managing director and Group CEO, and discussed opportunities for partnership and growth in upstream, new energies and decarbonisation across the hydrocarbon value chain, the statement said. "Dr Al Jaber and Mr Mukesh Ambani exchanged a signed framework agreement between ADNOC and Reliance to explore collaboration in the exploration, development and production of conventional and unconventional resources in Abu Dhabi as well as in decarbonization of operations, including in carbon dioxide (CO2) sequestration," it said. Al Jaber said, "Reliance is a valued strategic partner and our collaboration at TA'ZIZ underscores the important role of industrial and energy cooperation as a means of strengthening the deep-rooted and friendly ties between the UAE and India." The TA'ZIZ EDC and PVC project is making solid progress towards the detailed design phase in advance of the final investment decision (FID) which is expected to be taken later this year. Mr Ambani said, "This joint venture is a testimony to the strong and growing ties between India and the UAE and will be a benchmark for more such projects built on the strengths of the two nations. I am looking forward to the implementation of the project at an accelerated pace, taking a step further in enhancing the lives of our people in the region." It is anticipated that the TA'ZIZ complex will benefit from the free trade agreement between India and the UAE, which was signed in February this year. Bilateral trade between both the nations will be boosted as new trade and development opportunities, such as TA'ZIZ, are further unlocked.
Source: NDTV
The Chinese government will further leverage export tax rebates to offer stronger support for foreign trade enterprises, according to a circular jointly released by the state taxation administration and other government organs. The circular outlines measures to improve export tax rebate policies and streamline procedures for applications. Efforts will be made to strengthen the linkage of export credit insurance and export tax rebate policies, and improve rebate policies for processing trade firms, according to the circular. The Asian giant will step up efforts to enhance data sharing and smooth the connections among customs, tax and other departments to further streamline export tax rebate procedures, it said. Efforts will also be made to support cross-border e-commerce firms by encouraging qualified enterprises to actively claim export tax rebates, official Chinese media reported citing the circular. A State Council executive meeting earlier this month decided to increase export tax rebates to promote foreign trade development. Enterprises with better credit records will enjoy greater customs clearance and tax refund facilitation
Source: fibre2fashion
The United Kingdom recently announced new measures to support Ukraine in its conflict with Russia by removing all tariffs covered by the existing UK-Ukraine trade deal and hitting the Russian government with fresh sanctions. All tariffs on goods imported from Ukraine will now be reduced to zero and all quotas will be removed under the free trade agreement. This will provide Ukraine economic support in their hour of need, a UK government press release said. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson pledged to cut tariffs to support Ukraine’s economy through this crisis when he visited Kyiv earlier this month. UK international trade secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan met Ukrainian ambassador to the UK Vadym Prystaiko in London last week to reiterate her country’s unwavering support for Ukraine and set out the new measures. The latest announcement comes following a direct request from the Ukrainian government to liberalise tariffs and support the Ukrainian economy. Removing tariffs on key Ukrainian exports including barley, honey, tinned tomatoes and poultry will help Ukrainian businesses and producers when they need it the most, the press release said.
Source: Fibre2 Fashion
Policy support and an impressive vaccination rollout prompting a strategic shift towards living-with-COVID will help Vietnam achieve growth of 6 per cent in 2022 and 7.2 per cent in 2023, according to Era Dabla-Norris, who led an International Monetary Fund (IMF) team to hold discussions for the 2022 Article IV consultation with Vietnam during April 4-20. Inflation is expected to edge up to 3.9 per cent by end-2022. Growth risks are tilted to the downside while inflation risks are tilted to the upside, she said. “The recovery is projected to strengthen, supported by the recently-approved Programme for Recovery and Development (PRD)….The conflict in Ukraine is expected to have a moderate impact on the pace of the recovery and inflation,” she said. The recovery has been uneven so far, with the service sector still lagging, while financial risks and inequality have likely risen, she said. Policy priorities should be to entrench the recovery, preserve macroeconomic stability, and promote inclusive growth. The size and composition of policy support should be proactively adjusted to the pace of recovery and clearly communicated and implemented to reduce uncertainty, she said. Decisive structural reforms are needed to address longstanding challenges related to the business environment, especially for small and medium enterprises, labour quality and skill mismatches, and governance, she said in a statement. “The outlook is subject to significant risks. Growth risks are tilted to the downside while inflation risks are tilted to the upside. The most immediate risks include the intensification of geopolitical tensions and a slowdown in China. Other risks include a tightening of global financial conditions and developments in the domestic real estate and corporate bond markets,” she said. “Revenue mobilization should be enhanced to finance a permanent strengthening of social security, build resilience to climate change and address pressures from population aging. The team welcomes Vietnam’s pledge to reach net-zero emission by 2050. It will be essential to transform the authorities’ ambitious climate adaption and mitigation plans into action including via better integration with the budget,” she added.
Source: Fibre2 Fashion
