NEW DELHI: The commerce ministry is likely to cancel approvals of as many as 62 special economic zones including Cochin Port Trust as the developers have not shown interest in moving forward with the projects. The Board of Approval (BoA), headed by commerce secretary Rita Teaotia, would consider cancellation of these proposals at its meeting on July 3. The board deals with issues related with special economic zones (SEZs). According to the agenda note of the board's meeting, the developers have not requested for extension of their letter of approval (LoA), under which they can seek more time to execute their projects. "As such it seems that the developers are not interested in the projects. The matter is placed before the BoA for further directions," the agenda said. It said that Cochin Port Trust, which had planned to set up Free Trade and Warehousing Zones (FTWZ) in Kerala, has expressed its inability to proceed with the project. The development commissioner of Cochin Special Economic Zone has recommended for cancellation of this project. Similarly, Delhi State Industrial & Infrastructure Development Corporation, Lark Projects, Mansarovar Industrial Development Corporation and Diamond IT Infracon have neither applied for LoA nor for notification of SEZ. Development commissioner of Noida Special Economic Zone has also suggested for cancellation of these projects. The numbers reflect erosion of investor interest in these zones, which once emerged as export hubs. In all these cases, formal approvals had been granted. SEZs, which emerged as major export hubs in the country, started loosing sheen after imposition of minimum alternate tax (MAT) and dividend distribution tax (DDT). To revive investor sentiment, the commerce ministry has taken certain steps. Exports from SEZs grew nearly 12 per cent to Rs 5.24 lakh crore in 2016-17. Data showed that as on March 31, SEZs have attracted investments worth Rs 4.23 lakh crore and generated employment for 17.31 lakh people. States like Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Telangana and Maharashtra are home to the highest number of operational SEZs.
Source: Financial Express
Surat: The Federation of Gujarat Weavers Welfare Association (FOGWWA) has demanded that the central government should implement fiber policy for all types of fibers to attract the same duty for the larger benefit of the Indian textile sector under the new GST regime. A memorandum was submitted by FOGWWA to district collector Mahendra Patel on Friday with a slew of demands, including implementation of fiber policy, refund of accumulated GST credit, no GST on all types of job work required to manufacture grey fabric by the powerloom weavers, lowering GST on yarn at 5 per cent or 12 per cent and imposing extra duty on the imported fabrics. FOGWWA office-bearers said that the inverted duty structure will increase the cost of fabric. The weaving job-work is done by the small units. Around 70 per cent of the units in the decentralized textile sector are working on job-work. The 18 per cent GST on job-work will force the small units to down the shutters as the cost of fabric will increase compared to the fabric manufactured in composite units. Sources said that the levy of 5 per cent on fabric and 18 per cnet on weaving job work has led to the situation where the master weavers have informed their job workers to discontinue the job-work from July 1. As huge number of powerloom units are engaged in job-work, there will be high job losses in the industry. President of FOGWWA, Ashok Jirawala said, "We are not opposing the GST, but we need simplification of the tax in the sector, like the government has done for the cotton textile sector. We want uniform duty in the textile and the government should not treat the MMF sector as a step baby." Jariwala added, "We will be visiting Gandhinagar on Tuesday to seek support from the opposition parties to help the MMF sector. With just few days to go, the sector needs clarity on the GST rates. The industry can't survive with 18 per cent and 5 per cent rates."
Source: PTI
Opposing the July 1 rollout of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), Mumbai Congress chief Sanjay Nirupam said on Friday that introduction of the new regime at this stage would be ‘draconian’ for the people. While making it clear that the Congress party was not opposed to the new tax regime, Nirupam said that it was opposed to the way the BJP was implementing it. “We can never be against the GST. We had introduced it. It is the way the BJP is going about its implementation. We fear it will fuel inspector-raj, increase scope of black money and corruption,” he said. He said, “Any trader found not having registered under the Act will be penalised. At present, not every trader will be aware of the details of the Act or how it will be implemented. The government must communicate with the traders and try and understand their concerns before imposing the rule,” he said. Nirupam said that consultations should be held with all stakeholders before rolling out the new tax regime. Nirupam, who held a press conference at the Congress office at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST), said that while the Act was meant to introduce a single tax slab in the country, different tax slabs add to the confusion. “The different percentages of tax slabs of GST — claimed to be 5,12, 18 and 28 — are not equivalent with the “one nation one tax policy regime of the leading party. The maximum slab of 18 percent is also not being followed,” Nirupam said. “A constitutional amendment to record the GST slabs is needed to be sure that the rate does not increase in the years to come. The move is also going to affect traders as a whole as it will bring certain goods including textile goods, tractors under tax which were not there before,” he added. Nirupam had tweeted to Amitabh Bachchan on Thursday to keep himself away from being the ambassador for GST. “We have supported the versatile actor’s association with government’s other initiatives like Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. With GST estimated to bring negative response, we do not want Bachchan’s image to be tarnished,” he added. Nirupam also criticized Shiv Sena-led Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s move to reject the proposal of Congress in Standing committee on Thursday, over discussing increased slabs of water tax every year. “We are yet not aware of the changes to be introduced through GST as we are not so tech-savvy. We fear what will happen,” said Hasmukh Shah, a cotton trader from Crawford Market.
Source: Financial Express
With just four days left for the rollout of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), the government has deferred the implementation of TDS and TCS provisions as well as exempted from registration small businesses selling on ecommerce platform. E-commerce companies will not be required to collect 1% TCS (Tax Collection at Source) while making payment to suppliers under the GST, which will be rolled out from July 1. As per the Central GST (CGST) Act, the notified entities are required to collect TDS (Tax Deducted at Source) at 1% on payments to suppliers to goods or services in excess of ₹2.5 lakh. This provision has been kept in abeyance. Based on the feedback received from trade and industry, the government has decided to postpone provision relating to TDS (Section 51) and TCS (Section 52) of the CGST/State GST Act 2017, with the objective of ensuring smooth rollout of the GST, the finance ministry said in a statement. Small businesses, with turnover less than ₹20 lakh, will also not be required to register themselves under the GST for selling goods or services through e-commerce portals. In other words, persons supplying goods or services through e-commerce operators, who are liable to collect tax at source, would not be required to obtain registration immediately. “This step has been taken to provide more time for persons liable to deduct tax at source/e-commerce companies and their suppliers to prepare for the historic tax reform,” the statement added. The GST Network portal has started accepting registration of TDS, TCS deductors and e-commerce operators only yesterday. Given the huge rush, it is unlikely that all registrations would be done before July 1. The biggest indirect tax reform since independence, the GST will subsume a host of levies, including excise, service tax, VAT and other local levies. It will create a uniform market for the seamless transfer of goods and services. GST is expected to widen the tax base, check tax evasion and add about 1-2% to the GDP.
Source: Business Line
With less than a week to go for the new indirect tax regime to kick in, small businesses are trying to understand the modalities of the goods and services tax (GST) as the compliance burden for them is set to significantly rise. Making a relaxation for small businesses, rules allow those with an annual turnover between ₹20 lakh and ₹75 lakh (or up to ₹50 lakh for hilly States) to opt for the composition scheme and file returns every quarter, the bigger challenges seems to be automating their systems and installing at least one computer for making and uploading invoices. “I run a small grocery store and though my turnover is over ₹20 lakh, I don’t know whether to run my shop or work out the computer system,” said Mahender Nath, the owner of a mom-and pop store in New Delhi. Analysts say that the problem is bigger in tier 2 and 3 towns where connectivity and the use of computers is considered a big challenge. “I recently met a client from Siwan (Bihar) who has a cement business and makes over ₹2 crore a year. He has registered for GST, but for him to get a computer and come on board for GST seemed bewildering,” said a GST Suvidha Provider (GSP) who did not wish to be named. According to the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), of the estimated six crore small firms in the country, about 2.5 crore traders will not be included under GST as they will be out of the threshold. “But at least 60 per cent of the remaining nearly four crore businesses don’t have a computer. Most are not very clear about the rules of the new tax either,” Praveen Khandelwal, National Secretary General of CAIT, had said at an event last week, adding that it is working on campaigns and awareness programmes for them.
‘Simple process’
According to government sources, to tide over this problem, the returns for the composition scheme will also be very simple in which the business will just have to mention its turnover, tax liability and the tax paid. “We are keeping it very simple,” said an official. The objective of filing returns is also to ensure that more firms come into the formal economy and pay taxes. “If you don’t register and pay tax, input tax credit will not be provided and the whole chain of the vendor, business and the seller will be disrupted. The idea is to ensure people pay taxes,” noted an official, adding that most have been filing more complicated returns under the current tax regime. GSPs, too, are working with small businesses to make them aware of compliance under the new tax regime and automating their invoices. “Technology selection for GST compliance is the biggest challenge for small traders. They must be educated about which technology solution provider they should choose based on parameters such as 24x7 availability of platform, security of their data and high-level performance to upload large number of invoices a day,” said Ashish Mittal, co-founder, EasemyGST.
Source: Business Line
Textile traders in Andhra Pradesh will down shutters in protest against goods and services tax (GST) for three days from Tuesday, according to Andhra Pradesh Textile Federation (APTF) president B Malleswara Reddy. He said the traders in the state had taken the decision in response to all-India bandh call given by Textile GST Sangharshan Samithi. The trade is demanding exemption of textiles/fabrics from GST. The traders will observe June 30 as ‘black day’ to protest against the government’s move to levy GST on fabrics, he said. The traders are apprehensive that the GST will push them into the process of filing returns more than 30 times. They also claim that they cannot employ clerks to maintain the computerised accounts. “Demonetisation has already taken its toll on the textile business. GST would further ruin it,” he added.
Source: Business Line
The Japanese leader is concerned about the consequences of Brexit because of the widely held perception that it will negatively affect Britain’s international standing “at a time when Japan desires a stronger bond between our two island and maritime democracies”, an official in Tokyo who is familiar with Abe’s thinking told the Guardian. The official, who asked not to be named, added that Abe was aware that the final Brexit deal “is beyond the reach of the Japanese government”. He said: “Whether the emerging circumstances will turn out to be in favour, or otherwise, of the City of London’s interests is what London and Brussels must work out. Needless to say, Tokyo is lobbying London so that Japanese financial interests are protected.” Brexit poses serious risks for Japanese firms if, as expected, it leaves Britain outside the single market. Japanese financial institutions are concerned about the loss of the “EU passport”, which enables banks based in London to operate freely across Europe’s financial markets while retaining most of their staff and operations in the capital. More than 1,000 Japanese firms operate in Britain, employing about 140,000 people, and have invested more than £40bn in the country. Evidence that Japanese firms are preparing for a hard Brexit surfaced recently when Daiwa Securities, which has its headquarters in London, announced that it would open a subsidiary in Frankfurt. Nomura Securities, Japan’s biggest brokerage, is reportedly planning to make Frankfurt its post-Brexit base, but it will retain a large number of staff at its current EU headquarters in the City. Other Japanese banks are expected to follow suit. Analysts said that Abe was trying to ensure that Japan’s strong commercial ties would remain relatively unaffected, even by a hard Brexit. Tokyo is also reportedly months away from agreeing a free trade deal with the EU – where more than 600,000 jobs are linked to exports to Japan – after more than four years of negotiations. “There are growing voices within Japanese business and industry calling on the government to ensure minimal disruption to bilateral economic ties,” said Osamu Tanaka, chief economist at the Dai-Ichi Life Research Institute in Tokyo. Abe’s overture is based on the premise that May will set Britain on course for a hard Brexit, despite the blow to her authority from the general election result. “I’m not expecting an exodus of Japanese banks to Germany, but they recognise that they need to have some sort of presence inside the EU after Britain leaves,” Tanaka said. Manufacturers and other firms would adopt a “wait-and-see” approach, he added. “Even a hard Brexit might not dramatically affect trade between Britain and the EU, so companies like Nissan are not going to prepare to leave only to discover at a later date that there was no need.” Martin Schulz, senior economist at the Fujitsu Research Institute in Tokyo, predicted that Japanese banks would have a significantly weaker presence in the City after Brexit. “Japanese banks are particularly affected by Brexit because most major banks have their strategic global headquarters in London, which is not the case for US and EU banks,” Schulz said. “Most western banks are planning to diversify into the European market, which brings more business to Frankfurt, Dublin and Paris. That strategy is more difficult for Japanese banks, but they will likely follow.” Japan’s major carmakers have so far indicated they have faith in the British economy after Brexit. Toyota announced a £240m investment in a car assembly plant in Derby, while Nissan committed to build its new Qashqai model at its plant in Sunderland, following a sweetheart deal between the business secretary, Greg Clark, and the firm’s chief executive, Carlos Ghosn. Last August, the Japanese telecoms and internet firm SoftBank mounted a £24bn takeover of Britain’s most valuable technology company, ARM. Other analysts were confident that Japanese banks would retain a significant presence in London. “Of course the main drawback of Brexit for Japanese financial institutions is the issue of the single licence [EU passport], so it would be natural for them to shift to Frankfurt, Amsterdam or Dublin,” said Nomura’s chief economist for Japan, Takashi Miwa. “But my sense is still that the UK has other advantages – like its legal system and financial knowhow – so Japanese financial institutions will retain major functions in London even after Brexit.” Japan’s government and Keidanren, the country’s biggest business lobby, have made little secret of their concern over post-Brexit risks to the British and Japanese economies. At last year’s G20 summit in Beijing, Tokyo issued a strongly worded letter to the EU and UK outlining fears over the future potential to export from Britain to third countries. “The Japanese government and Keidanren are most concerned that the UK will lose its status as a free trade partner with the European continent, and that will in turn mean Japan losing certain advantages,” Miwa said.
Source: Guardian
Many of the problems taxpayers are going to face over the next few weeks, indeed months, once the GST regime comes into force are unavoidable. This will include not being able to upload all the 137 invoices that the average business has to upload every month—going by an interview of GSTN chief Navin Kumar in Mint—and around 50,000 in the case of large businesses. Forget companies, going by reports published in this newspaper, even the GST Suvidha Providers (GSPs) that are supposed to help firms navigate GST are far from ready. Indeed, as this newspaper reported, it is only now that GSTN has put out a tender asking for firms to test its network in real time on 15 parameters that include assessment & adjudication, recovery, refund and data warehousing & predictive analyses. This is why revenue secretary Hasmukh Adhia has, time and again, said the government will not penalise firms who make mistakes while uploading the data in the initial period; indeed, while GST will come into being on July 1, firms have been given a few months before they have to mandatorily file all data electronically. This is why, for instance, GSTN is also working on developing apps to make life easier. One such app, cited in the Mint interview, draws data from an excel sheet maintained by the company in the normal course and uploads this to the GST system. While such problems are to be expected when a new system is tried out—it will happen even if the date for filing is extended from July 1 to January 1 next year—what is unacceptable is the huge delay in announcing the alternative regime for tax breaks that will go once GST comes into force. Area-based exemptions of sales tax and excise duties like those in Uttarakhand, for instance, attracted scores of companies to set up shop there; even the Maruti factory in Sanand in Gujarat has been given generous sales tax holidays. It is true that the sales tax holidays were given by the state governments and so it is up to them to come up with alternatives. But if they haven’t been able to come up with this, the Centre hasn’t been able to come up with acceptable alternatives for excise-exemptions either. Till an alternative is found, how are businesses that factored in these exemptions to function? In the case of mobile phone manufacturing that the government has been tom-tomming, the current 11.5% advantage through the countervailing duty will expire within a week. How are firms that have set up assembly plants already, and those that are planning to, to be compensated for this? From time to time, various alternatives have been thrown up—one such, in the case of mobile phones, was to hike the import duty. When it was pointed out by many, including this newspaper, that this would attract censure from the WTO, and probably sanctions as well, the plan was put on the back-burner. The point, however, is that with neither this plan executed nor any alternative put in place, manufacturers can only guess as to what option will be offered, and by when. This, the government should know, is no way to run a business. And yet, it remains quite confident that, the next time around, India will move up many notches in the World Bank’s Doing Business indices.
Source: Financial Express
Close to 50,000 textile traders from Ahmedabad will join their brethren from across the country in a three-day bandh starting June 27 and will observe June 30 as black day to protest against the government’s move to levy GST on fabrics. Textile traders are demanding the exemption of fabrics from the framework of GST, failing which they will go on an indefinite strike, the date of which will be decided later. The decision was made at a meeting of over 300 textiles trade bodies from across the country in New Delhi on Friday. Traders claim levying tax on fabrics is unprecedented in the country’s history and the move will create anarchy in business as small players are not equipped to comply with complex regulations of the GST. They are also wary of the return of inspection raj. Textile traders have given a boycott call against registering under GST. Home to textiles hubs such as Surat, Ahmedabad and Jetpur, Gujarat is an important player in the sector. “We have decided to go on a three-day nationwide strike from Tuesday. To observe the black day, we will be wearing black bands and waving black flags,” said Jaylal, spokesman of Textile GST Sangharsh Samiti, formed by businessmen in Surat. Earlier, on Thursday, a meeting of the president, office-bearers and traders of New Cloth Market, Panchkuwa Kapad Mahajan, Maskati Mahajan and, even, Hathlaari Mandal, which delivers goods to the market, was held in Ahmedabad. Gaurang Bhagat, president of Maskati Mahajan, said there is panic amongst traders, who feel it is not possible for them to comply with GST regulation, which could cost them their business.
Source: DNA
Surat: Synthetic and Rayon Textile Export Promotion Council (SRTEPC), the apex body of man-made fabric (MMF) sector, has appealed to textile traders not to resort to strike and approach the Centre with their legitimate demands to resolve the issues on Goods and Services Tax (GST). SRTEPC chairman Narain Aggarwal told TOI, "Strikes, dharnas and public meetings are not long-term solutions to resolve things. Instead, traders should approach the central government with their legitimate demands." According to Aggarwal, a delegation of industry leaders, including Dhiru Shah, chairman of Fairdeal Filaments, and SRTEPC's former chairman, Anil Rajvanshi, had met Union textile minister Smriti Irani and Union minister of commerce Nirmala Sitharaman in New Delhi on Friday last. A strong representation was made on the burning issue of import of cheap fabrics from China, which is going to ruin the powerloom weaving sector in the country. A demand was made to increase import duty on Chinese fabrics to protect the domestic industry. The delegation members also discussed need to lower the proposed 18% duty on MMF to 12% and providing refund on accumulated credit to weavers. The weavers will purchase yarn at 18% GST and sell the fabric at 5% GST. The GST Council, however, has not allowed input tax credit to the textile sector, which will affect profitability of weavers. Aggarwal said, "Both the ministers assured us on looking into cheap import of Chinese fabrics as well as refund of accumulated tax credit to the weavers. We are hopeful that the central government will allow weavers to take the benefit of input tax credit. The ministers were firm in their stand that they will not allow the domestic textile industry, especially the weavers, to die due to cheap import of fabrics from China."
Source : Times of India
The export promotion schemes will continue under GST regime, said commerce secretary Rita Teaotia. The government is committed to continue with the incentive schemes while upgrading the system to resolve the issues of the exporters and importers. There are chances that the deemed export benefits may discontinue for level playing field in the GST regime. These clarifications were given by Teaotia at the open house session organised by the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) on mid-term review of foreign trade policy at Bangalore. The session witnessed participation of exporters from various organisations including textiles, silk, engineering and defence among others. At the programme, the exporters argued for continuation of all schemes to make Indian products competitive as well as the need for exemption route instead of tax payment and then take refund. Karnataka silk industry stated that introduction of 5 per cent GST for the industry will harm their growth as they were facing competition from countries like China and the process is done by marginal worksman. "The major global trade is happening in high and medium technology sector where India’s share is absolutely low. China is constantly increasing its share in this sector and thereby showing quantum jump in exports," said Ganesh Kumar Gupta, president, FIEO. He urged the commerce secretary to provide fiscal stimulus to high and medium technology sector in the mid-term review of the foreign trade policy. Further, he also stressed the need to build India's reputation of being the leader in software to sell our hardware and software embedded hardware. Dr A Sakthivel, regional chairman, FIEO(southern region) said that paying GST and taking refund will block working capital of exporters which is costly compared to our competing countries. He also highlighted various anomalies like non-inclusion of garments manufacturers in the 5 per cent GST announced for textiles industry job works.
Source: Fibre2Fashion
In an interview, she speaks of her roadmap for textiles, but is evasive when it comes to her plans as a politician and for Amethi ahead of 2019 For Smriti Irani, every challenge is an opportunity. Having picked up the threads of “administrative skills” from the HRD Ministry, she is now weaving a new story for Indian textiles. Past 7 pm, amidst back-to-back meetings ahead of the Textile India event in Gandhinagar, Irani says the idea is to make India a hub for the entire world, be it textiles, jute, cotton, man-made fibre or apparel. In an interview, she speaks of her roadmap for textiles, but is evasive when it comes to her plans as a politician and for Amethi ahead of 2019, saying she is not even sure where she will be after July 2, the day the fair ends. Excerpts:
Your ministry is holding a Textiles India exhibition in Gujarat. What are the major takeaways from it?
India has never hosted the entire textile value chain as a mega trade fair or conferences all under one roof. When we began, there was a perception that we will get representations and buying houses from just around 25 countries. That has swelled to 100 countries. Our target was around 1,000 foreign delegates. We have crossed 1,800, inching towards 2,000. We now have 15,000 representatives from across the country, 26 round tables and 17 ministries participating. So something which began small has grown so large.
How will it help weavers who have not been getting their due because of middlemen?
One of the PM’s initiatives is the Indian handloom brand, wherein we wanted weavers to have a specific idea of their own works. A lot of weavers were claiming that their design patterns were taken up by either an individual company or individual who acted as middlemen... We helped in getting the weaving and designing community under one platform... Our fashion show will have at one end a Sabyasachi and at another a simple Gujarati weaver from a Kutch village, together on the same platform.
What is the biggest challenge you face?
I never look at any issue as a challenge. I always look at it as an opportunity. The minute you look at a thing as a challenge, you just get weighed down by the enormity of it.
What was more challenging, HRD or textiles?
It is like comparing apples and oranges. I think the administrative skills I inherited from HRD are standing me in good stead in textiles. I am happy that textiles, which was not a buzz word in circles, has become a prominent word today.
How do you propose to overcome the challenge the handloom industry faces from technology and products like, say, Chinese silks?
Technology should be used as an opportunity, not as a challenge... What helps us is the PM’s clarion call for Make in India... I am of the opinion that India becoming a sourcing hub for the globe is what the Textiles India event is all about. So be it technical textiles, jute, cotton or man-made fibre, anything that the world needs, India becomes the global destination. We are talking of the entire value chain — grow, buy material, stitch and the world can wear it.
Coming to Amethi, are you going to devote more time to politics as you go into 2019?
I don’t know where I will be after July 2, let alone 2019. Kal kisne dekha... Three years ago somebody said she will not be seen. I said you possibly do not know me... I ensure that I have a connect with people. Did I win from there? No. Does anybody who does not win from a place go back? No. But I do and the fact that we won four Assembly seats out of five in the last UP Assembly elections speaks a lot about how much people want to support the BJP. So I think that the four Assembly seats we won shows the expectation and the groundswell in terms of support in Amethi for the BJP. And they have only one BJP icon who they know will help them overcome the challenge, and that is Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Is there any politician, in India or abroad, whom you idolise?
Who do you see here (points at the back to Modi’s woven portrait on the wall)?
What is the next big step you are envisaging?
We are going to do a lot of work in knitwear. We are also looking at more opportunities for technical textiles and geo textiles. We are looking for more diversification of jute and more opportunities for increased yield of cotton per hectare, so my plate is quite full for the rest of the year.
Some textile traders are opposing 5-per cent GST on textiles...
I think they are not. I saw public declarations by apparel councils and clothing manufacturers openly welcoming the 5 per cent... We have said that the Finance Ministry will be happy to address any clarification. The GST rate is something the Centre and state decide together.
Source: DNA
The Tiruppur Exporters' Association (TEA) has again urged Union textiles minister Smriti Irani to expedite releasing Rebate on State Levies (ROSL) pending claims. The ministry of textiles had announced ROSL in lieu of Value Added Tax (VAT) while releasing the special package for apparel sector and the scheme came into effect from September 20, 2016. As per the scheme, the Central government had taken into consideration all the taxes paid by the exporters, like VAT, electricity duty, octroi, entry tax, etc., and it is to be noted that some of the taxes like electricity duty, octroi and entry tax were not being refunded earlier to the exporters. The ROSL rate for the respective garment items exported varies from 2.65 per cent to 3.9 per cent, said TEA in a press release. Raja M Shanmugham, president of TEA said that ROSL has been pending for more than nine months for most of the garment exporting units and only a few units got the ROSL amount partially till December month. The total ROSL amount for all india readymade garment exports (woven and knitwear) estimated for the period September 20, 2016 to June 20, 2017 is Rs 3,025 crore and out of this, till date only Rs 400 crore has been disbursed and the balance to be given is Rs 2,625 crore. He said for Tirupur exporting units alone the ROSL amount pending is about Rs 550 crore. Though in the Union Budget 2017-18, Rs 1,555 crore was allotted for ROSL claim, till date it has not been disbursed, added Shanmugham. He said representations have been made to textile minister, commerce minister, finance minister, MSME minister, road transport and highways, shipping minister, textile secretary, finance secretary, commerce secretary, DGFT, joint secretary (drawback), PMO and NITI Aayog to help for releasing the ROSL pending claim. (KD)
Source: Fibre2Fashion, June 26, 2017
New Delhi - The government has started an anti-dumping probe into a select Chinese polyester yarn following complaints from SRF Ltd and Reliance Industries. The Directorate General of Anti-dumping and Allied Duties (DGAD), under the commerce ministry, has "sufficient" evidence of dumping of 'high tenacity polyester yarn' from the neighbouring nation. SRF Ltd and Reliance Industries have alleged dumping of the yarn and asked for an investigation into the matter. If established that dumping has caused material injury to domestic players, the DGAD will recommend imposition of anti- dumping duty. Anti-dumping duties are levied to provide a level playing field to local industry by guarding against cheap, below-cost imports. The probing authority "hereby initiates an investigation into the alleged dumping, and consequent injury to the domestic industry", the DGAD said in a notification. The investigation will cover the period from April 2016 to March this year. These yarns are used for manufacture of tyre cord fabric, seat belt webbing, slings, ropes, coated fabric and conveyor belt fabric. Increasing imports and dumping of goods from China have always been an area of concern for Indian companies. Exports to China were only USD 9 billion in 2015-16, but imports totalled USD 61.7 billion in the fiscal. The DGAD is also probing dumping of several other products such as chemicals from China. India is one of the most attractive markets for global producers due to its large middle class population. Imposition of anti-dumping duty is permissible under theWorld Trade Organisation (This story has not been edited by timesofindia.com and is auto–generated from a syndicated feed we subscribe to.) (WTO) regime. Both India and China are members of the Geneva-based body.
Source: PTI
Close to 17 textile mills in the government and cooperative sectors of Kerala need revival and an expert committee has suggested infusing Rs 494.81 crore in capital for it. The one-time fund infusion needs to be time-bound, considering that all the mills should benefit at the same time. This will depend on the political will of the Kerala government. The sector employs thousands of people and the government does not have time to lose, P Nandakumar, chairman of the expert committee told a leading daily. He is sceptical about the government's understanding about the situation's enormity and its potential to bring about a socio-economic change for society's lower rungs. The expert committee worked in association with the South Indian Textile Research Association and suggested implementing the strategy over a period of nine months. Time-bound implementation will help the mills grow and begin making profits from the third year itself, said Nandakumar. The chairman also said that the infusion has to be a one-time requirement and the mills will be capable of upgrading themselves within 5 years. Stakeholders as well as workers will benefit from the revival. One an average, workers can be expected to earn Rs 20,000 per month. The size of Kerala's local market is Rs 3,500 crore and the per capita consumption of cloth in Kerala is 34 metres, as opposed to the all-India average of 16-17 metres. The expert committee has recommended that the government can cater to this demand by developing a Kerala brand using the capacities of handloom, powerloom and spinning mills. Implementation of the strategy to revive the mills is expected to increase capacity utilisation from 55.4 per cent to 98.5 per cent.
Source: Fibre2Fashion
The international crude oil price of Indian Basket as computed/published today by Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC) under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas was US$ 44.28* per barrel (bbl) on 26.06.2017. In rupee terms, the price of Indian Basket was Rs. 2857.47* per bbl on 26.06.2017. Rupee closed at Rs. 64.54** per US$ on 26.06.2017. The table below gives details in this regard:
|
Particulars |
Unit |
Price on June 26, 2017 |
|
Crude Oil (Indian Basket) |
($/bbl) |
44.28* |
|
(Rs/bbl) |
2857.47* |
|
|
Exchange Rate |
(Rs/$) |
64.54** |
* Since Oman & Dubai prices are not available due to holiday in Singapore on 26.06.2017, the price of Indian Basket Crude oil cannot be derived. Therefore, price of Indian basket as of 23.06.2017 has been considered.
** RBI reference rate for 26.06.2017 is not available. Therefore rate of 23.06.2017 has been considered.
Source: PIB
Raymond plans to invest ₹1,400 crore in a phased manner in its greenfield project at Amravati to expand the cotton textile manufacturing footprint. The plant, when completed by this year-end, will employ 8,000 workers and produce linen, cotton shirting, denim and garmenting. “It is likely to be commissioned by the year-end. Spread across 500 acres, the project is in line with our strategy to expand the cotton textile manufacturing footprint by creating world-class linen, cotton shirting, denim and garmenting at the newly created Textile Park in Amravati,” Gautam Hari Singhania, Chairman and Managing Director, Raymond Group, told BusinessLine. On the retail side, the company plans to put up 300 Raymond shops and 200 other format shops under Park Avenue and Colour Plus in tier-IV and tier-V cities over the next two years. It currently has 1,100 shops in 450 cities. The company recently announced plans to manufacture from Ethiopia as the country has preferred access to certain developed markets. “We are targeting export revenue of ₹250 crore per annum from Ethiopia and should break even in three years,” he said. Though Raymond will make suits for leading global brands and retailers such as JC Penny, Express, Calvin Klein and UK brand Suitsupply from Ethiopia, it has no plans to launch its own brand in US and Europe. “It is sexy to say I’m going to sell my Raymond suits in England but it does not make economic sense. We will use our brand strength in India and tap neighbouring markets in West Asia, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh,” he said. The company has committed 2.70 lakh manhours to create fashion with Khadi.
Source: Business Line
|
Item |
Price |
Unit |
Fluctuation |
Date |
|
PSF |
1099.14 |
USD/Ton |
-0.46% |
6/26/2017 |
|
VSF |
2186.59 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
ASF |
2237.78 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
Polyester POY |
1135.71 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
Nylon FDY |
2705.81 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
40D Spandex |
5089.85 |
USD/Ton |
-0.57% |
6/26/2017 |
|
Polyester DTY |
5791.90 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
Nylon POY |
1360.22 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
Acrylic Top 3D |
2515.67 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
Polyester FDY |
2398.66 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
Nylon DTY |
1462.60 |
USD/Ton |
1.01% |
6/26/2017 |
|
Viscose Long Filament |
2852.07 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
30S Spun Rayon Yarn |
2852.07 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
32S Polyester Yarn |
1689.30 |
USD/Ton |
-0.26% |
6/26/2017 |
|
45S T/C Yarn |
2691.18 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
40S Rayon Yarn |
2998.33 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
T/R Yarn 65/35 32S |
2296.28 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
45S Polyester Yarn |
1828.25 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
T/C Yarn 65/35 32S |
2267.03 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
10S Denim Fabric |
1.36 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
32S Twill Fabric |
0.85 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
40S Combed Poplin |
1.18 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
30S Rayon Fabric |
0.66 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
|
45S T/C Fabric |
0.67 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
6/26/2017 |
Source: Global Textiles
Note: The above prices are Chinese Price (1 CNY = 0.14646 USD dtd. 26/06/2017). The prices given above are as quoted from Global Textiles.com. SRTEPC is not responsible for the correctness of the same.
Restructuring the textile and garment industry involves drawing up a new development strategy, using new technologies, and closing fiber and textile factories that use outdated technologies. The Nam Dinh Textile & Garment JSC has undergone ‘major surgery’. The number of workers has been cut from 18,000 to 4,000. However, the remaining workers’ output equals that of 18,000 workers in the past. The textile & garment industry has been improving satisfy the requirements of global value chains. The productivity has improved thanks to renovation of machines and equipment and the removal of factories with outdated technologies.
However, many things still need to be done. MOIT is going to submit to the government a plan to restructure industry in general in 2016-2020, which includes the textile & garment industry. Commenting about the plan, Le Tien Truong, deputy chair of the Vietnam Textile & Apparel Association (Vinatas) said the figures shown in the plan were not reliable. The plan, for instance, says that productivity is VND35-40 million a year, while Truong believes the figure is inaccurate and it is lower than the real figure. If noting that Vietnam exported $28 million worth of textiles & garments in 2016 and The textile & garment industry has been improving satisfy the requirements of global value chains. The productivity has improved thanks to renovation of machines and equipment and the removal of factories with outdated technologies. imported $17 billion worth of input materials, the average productivity would be VND140 million per worker. The plan shows several targets such as repositioning enterprises geographically and shutting down factories with outdated technologies, but it does not include implementation measures. There are three ways to improve productivity in the textile & garment industry, according to Truong. First, using few workers and high-productivity machines. Second, shutting down unprofitable enterprises and reducing the number of enterprises consuming a lot of power. Third, adjusting the product structure to choose enterprises with higher added value. Truong Duy Hung, director of MOIT’s planning department, the compiler of the plan, believes the weak point of textile industry is the lack of input materials. Analysts say that if Vietnamese enterprises make input materials, their products would be able to replace Chinese products and can compete with Chinese products in price. In current conditions, however, it is easier and faster to seek input materials from China than domestic sources. This is because China organizes large-scale production and always has large stocks, while Vietnam only makes products to order. Vietnam earned $6.84 billion from garment and textile exports in the first quarter of this year, 11.2 percent more than in the same period last year, according to Vinatas.
Source: VietNamNet Bridge
Chinese consumers generally prefer American brands, as they believe they represent premium quality and better design, this was the takeaway from the Alibaba Gateway ’17. The international conference helped small-to-medium-sized businesses in US understand the opportunity in China and sell their products in China via Alibaba’s various platforms. Alibaba Gateway ’17 is the largest event Alibaba has hosted outside of China. More than 3,000 participated in the event that concluded on June 22, 2017 in Michigan. Fung Global Retail & Technology also attended the event. The two day programme covered many success stories of merchants selling on Alibaba’s platforms in different categories, with sessions detailing how Alibaba can help more American businesses sell on its platform Speakers at the conference discussed about the significant demand for American goods in China. Overall, US goods are ranked as the third-most-popular items on Alibaba’s e-commerce platforms after goods from Japan and South Korea, according to Alibaba’s data analytics. On Alibaba’s branded platform Tmall, US brands rank number two. At the conference, it was highlighted that the market potential for the fashion category is expected to be driven by rising demand from the lower-tier cities of China. The market size for fashion in China is projected to reach $195 billion in next five years. There are currently 102 cities in China with a population of over 1 million. The combined spending power of the lower-tier cities is estimated to equate to roughly the same as the four tier-one cities—Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen. Alibaba’s data indicates that consumers in the lower-tier cities demand the same fashion goods as those in tier-one cities. The fashion category is the number-one category that aspirational shoppers in lower-tier cities plan to trade up when their income increases.
Source: Fibre2Fashion
Pakistan's exports of textiles have declined from $13.5 billion in FY-14 to $10.5 billion in FY-17. (AFP) Pakistan's biggest industry, labour employer and dollar earner, has gone on warpath as production and exports shrink. On a call of the industry leader, All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (Aptma) all textile mills observed "Black Day, on June 20. The mill owners, managements and worker protested in front of their mills and, put on anti-government slogans at their premises. It was carried out peacefully in all major industry centre across Pakistan, including Karachi, Lahore, Multan, Faisalabad and Peshawar. They displayed banners, and slogans, against the "anti-industry, anti-investment, and anti-export policies of the government." They resolved "to continue their agitation for restoration of the viability of the textile industry." The annual exports of textiles have declined form $13.5 billion in FY-14 to $10.5 billion in FY-17. It, and may go down further on the back of the growing foreign competition from China and India, as well as from such new comers as Vietnam, and non-cotton-growing Bangladesh. The domestic reasons which led to "virtual disintegration of the textile industry," over the years, as experts and industry analysts say included: High cost of doing business, growing tax burden, expensive bank credit, high cost of electricity and natural gas, use of old machinery, lack of installing modern machinery and use of new technology. Textiles, and four other top exports - carpets, leather products, surgical apparatus and sports goods - industries which are the biggest producers, exporters ad dollar-earners, were granted a huge Rs180 billion subsidy and bailout package by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in November last to raise production and exports. But, beset by an ever-growing budgetary deficit, declining tax collections, growing government's increasing borrowing from banks at home and abroad, large repayments of foreign credits and no-cash-in-hand, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar is virtually holding up the disbursement of the Rs180 billion bailout package. It was to be dispersed to the industry over 18 months, at the rate of Rs10bn a month. The textile exports, coupled with nearly $19 billion annual remittances sent home by overseas Pakistani workers plus $20 billion annual exports in FY-17 are the only two dollar earners. Pakistan direly needs to enlarge these inflows, to pay for $50 imports, as in FY-17. Pakistan's current account deficit is widening. It hit the all-time high of $32 billion in FY-17. The government's lack of response to the industry's demands circles around the cash-starved government's budgetary decisions to raise taxes and its refusal to repay the promised tax refunds. The industry on paper has given the industry a number of tax concessions but the government has created a time-wasting system under which the producers and the exporters of textiles first pay all their sales and other taxes when they purchase, from the market, various inputs for any product. The producers and exporters then get the official certification of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), central bank, confirmation that the relevant goods have actually been exported, and payment for these exports has been received from abroad in foreign exchange. These repayable amounts to the exporters are called Tax Refunds. Aptma says the ministry of finance is illegally holding up repayment of tax refunds totalling Rs200 billion to the industry for no reason. But, Dar says the reason is "the government has no cash to repay Rs200 billion." Aptma's former chairman Yasin Siddik, says: "Out of the Rs180 billion bailout plan, only Rs400 million have been returned to the industry. For disbursement over the next 18 months, only Rs4 billion has been provided in the budget for FY-18." It means the finance ministry itself has killed the bailout package. Syed Ali Ahsan, Aptma president for Punjab announced at a news conference: "We will hold a convention of all associations of the textile industry in Islamabad on July 7 to "discuss the problems include the falling exports, closure of textile mills and job retrenchment. We will also stage a protest in font of the Parliament of Pakistan to press for meeting our demands." He also said: "The government is not serious in solving our problems. One hundred (rpt 100) mills have already been closed down so for. If the government fails to redress our problems, the remaining mills will also be shut down." Aptma group leader Gohar Ejaz demanded "an immediate reduction in electricity and natural gas tariff. The energy tariff is 10 per cent higher in Pakistan than in the countries competing against us. They include China, India, Bangladesh and Vietnam. Ahmed Kamal, chief of Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA), is of the view, due to "the ongoing crisis 30pc processing industry have already closed down, and more than 10,000 workers have lost their jobs. This has resulted from the ongoing liquidity crunch, caused by to non-disbursement of our Rs200bn Withholding Tax. Textile exporters have been deprived of liquidity as 30pc to 40pc of their working capital has been blocked in the tax refund cycle." While the government stays mum, this being the current state of Pakistan's biggest industry - textiles - what does the future holds for it? The writer is based in Islamabad. Views expressed are his own and do not reflect the newspaper's policy.
Source: Khaleej Times
On Wednesday June 21, 2017, South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster signed the states hemp legalization legislation. The bill will eventually allow farmers across the Palmetto State to cultivate legal industrial hemp, which is defined federally as cannabis with a THC level below 0.3%. Initially they will only be allowing 20 acre plots and only 20 licenses will be issued the first year. They will begin accepting applications in July for cultivation, but it is unclear whether farmers will have enough time to grow this season. Licensing to grow the crop mandates that growers must submit to a background check, among other requirements. Co-sponsor of the bill, Rep. Russell Ott of St, Mathews, said in May, “I know that people have already contacted the department to let them know that they are interested in applying for the permit. The bottom line is, we could have hemp being grown in South Carolina this year, and that’s exciting.” The second year of cultivation they will issue 50 licenses for 50 acres each. After that, the states Department of Agriculture will coordinate with the state universities doing research to determine the number and size of permits that will be issued. “As growers come aboard and products are developed, the industry has a chance to both add to a farmer’s bottom line and perhaps breathe life into some of South Carolina’s abandoned textile mills,” explained State Sen. Danny Verdin, chairman of the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee. “This very slow and heavy regulated approach will quickly evolve into a valuable industry. Imagine if we could actually make textiles in our textile mills again.” The bill easily passed the state’s House and Senate in May, and McMaster indicated at that time he would sign the bill when it was presented to him.
Source: Oregon Cannabis Connection
Japan wants to hold early free trade talks with Britain, in a sign of growing concern among the country’s businesses over post-Brexit access to the European market. Japan’s prime minister, Shinzo Abe, is hoping to soften the blow that Britain’s expected withdrawal from the single market could inflict on Japanese companies by starting informal talks on free trade before Britain leaves the EU, the Nikkei business newspaper said, citing unnamed sources. Under EU rules, official negotiations cannot begin until after Britain has left the trading bloc. But Abe’s enthusiasm for an early free trade agreement will encourage Theresa May and other pro-Brexit politicians who insist that leaving the EU will mean Britain is better placed to trade freely with major economies.
Source: Business Line
