The textile and clothing industry will end the year 2018 on a mixed note in both exports and the domestic markets, while expecting a revival in 2019. “The year 2018 has been better than 2017, but not so good,” said Sanjay K. Jain, chairman, Confederation of Indian Textile Industry. International demand was largely muted because of the threat of U.S.-China trade war and uncertainties. The domestic market did not pick up as expected.
Stagnation in exports
After almost four years of exports stagnating at about ₹37 billion, textile and clothing sector is looking forward to growth this financial year. Exports between April and November this fiscal grew 7% in rupee terms compared with the year-earlier period though the growth was almost nil in dollar terms. “This financial year, maybe, we will cross it marginally. But, we need a push,” he said. India’s share in the global textile and clothing trade remains at 4%-5 %. It is all a matter of competitiveness. India’s competitiveness should improve, he added. Apparel exports so far this financial year is down 12%. Annual apparel exports from India is nearly ₹17 billion, said A. Sakthivel, vice-chairman, Apparel Export Promotion Council. It is ₹34 billion from Bangladesh, ₹21 billion from Vietnam, and ₹11 billion from Cambodia. “These countries have duty-free access to many markets. “We (apparel) are not able to give competitive prices in the international market. We have a price disadvantage. We are yet to come out of the GST effect. The rupee value fluctuation is also high. The government should consider increasing the ROSL (Rebate of State Levies) rate,” he says. The overall growth could be about 5% for the year ending March 2019, said Siddhartha Rajagopal, executive director, Cotton Textiles Export Promotion Council. Cotton textile exports are expected to be up 8% to 10%. Usually, shipments during January-March are high. Export demand was good in patches this year. Indications are that international demand will pick up next year and this will have a positive impact on exports, he said.
Rising imports
What is a matter of concern is increasing imports. Import of yarn, fabric and made-ups rose 13% in April-November this year, compared with the same period last year, Mr. Jain added. Imports are mainly in the man-made fibre segment and these come from countries such as China, Indonesia, and Korea. Production of textiles and apparel in the country rose between April and October this year as against the same period last year according to IIP data. There was negative growth in 2017 because of GST and demonetisation. The domestic demand picked up in the first six months in 2018 but slowed down after that, Mr. Jain added. With liquidity issues and stricter norms under Amended Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (ATUFS), investments have been slow. Margins are under stress and bank finance is difficult to come. The ATUFS norms should be relaxed and liquidity should improve for investments to revive in the sector, say industry sources.
Source: The Hindu
Fifteen cargo terminals, run by private firms at Centreowned major port trusts under a rate regime finalised in 2005, are set to get a fresh lease of life with the Shipping Ministry drafting new tariff setting guidelines that addresses most of their concerns barring its ‘prospective’ application.The changes proposed include allowing these older cargo terminals to set rates for services to meet their annual revenue requirement (ARR). The ARR (a cap) will be the average of actual expenditure for the past three years, plus a 16-per cent return on capital employed (ROCE), which includes capital work in progress, according to the draft tariff policy circulated by the Ministry for stakeholders’ comments. The 16 per cent ROCE will be calculated on the gross fixed assets, which is followed for new public-private-partnership (PPP) projects, which operate under the rate frameworks finalised in 2008 and 2013. This is a significant departure from the current practice of computing the return on the net block of assets. The rate set by using the new guideline will be valid for three years, indexed annually to the wholesale price index (WPI), a measure of costs, to the extent of 60 per cent.
‘Flawed’ clauses
Terminal operators have hauled the government to courts over many “flawed” clauses in the 2005 rate regime— either individually or under the banner of their lobby group, the Indian Private Ports and Terminals Association (IPPTA)— after the rate regulator ordered rate cuts when the terminals asked for a raise. The terminal operators say that the rate cuts, if implemented, would render their facilities commercially unviable, and have secured the Older cargo terminals may be able to reset rates to meet ARR courts’backing to stay the rate reductions ordered by the Tariff Authority for Major Ports (TAMP), some as far back as 2012. The Ministry draft says that the new rate setting norms will take effect prospectively, potentially creating a problem on treatment of past surplus if the courts rule in favour of the TAMP-ordered rate cuts. Yet, the draft provides a ray of hope to the beleaguered operators. “The scale of rates of some of the Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) operators have not been reviewed due to the litigations pending in the High Courts on the tariff orders passed by TAMP. The surplus/deficit over and above the admissible costs and permissible return, if any, arising during the period of litigation will be subject to the orders of the respective High Courts. Alternatively, the Shipping Ministry, the Major Port Trust concerned, the BOT operator and TAMP may decide on the treatment of past period surplus arising during the period of litigation,” the Ministry wrote in the draft policy. The rate setting norms are being re-written to give a “reasonable return” to the BOT operators on capital employed, a ministry official told BusinessLine. “Under the 2005 rate guideline, the return diminished with each passing year due to depreciation since it was worked out on the net block of assets,” he said. “The BOT operators previously governed by the 2005 rate structure will be in a better position when the return is calculated on the gross assets,” he added.
Computing the return on gross assets was a major demand of the older terminal operators, including global giants such as DP World Ltd, PSA International Pte Ltd and APM Terminals Management BV. They argued that servicing the royalty/revenue share payout in the face of declining returns had rendered their facilities unviable. The only sticking point between the government and the older terminals would be the royalty/revenue share payable to the landlord port by the BOT operator. The draft reiterates the current position that royalty/revenue share will not be allowed as an admissible cost for tariff computation, citing a 29 July 2003 order issued by the Ministry. In those BOT cases where bidding process was finalised before 29 July 2003, the tariff computation will take into account the royalty/revenue share as cost subject to the amount quoted by the second highest bidder. IPPTA wants full royalty/revenue share to be treated as cost for tariff fixation.
Source: Press Reader
India remained ahead of China to retain the tag world's fastest growing large economy withstanding several ups and downs, spike in oil prices and global trade war like situation during 2018. Indian economy's roller-coaster ride during the year gone by was best captured by the GDP growth. According to Niti Aayog Vice-Chairman Rajiv Kumar, the focus of the government in 2019 will be to expedite reforms with a view to accelerate growth. India remained ahead of China to retain the tag world’s fastest growing large economy withstanding several ups and downs, spike in oil prices and global trade war like situation during 2018. Indian economy’s roller-coaster ride during the year gone by was best captured by the GDP growth. In the first quarter of 2018-19 ending June 30, it grew at an impressive 8.2 per cent, after 7.7 per cent in the first three months of the year. Then it slipped to 7.1 per cent in the next quarter ending September 30. Fitch Ratings slashed India’s GDP growth forecast to 7.2 per cent for the current fiscal, from 7.8 per cent projected in September, citing higher financing cost and reduced credit availability. According to Niti Aayog Vice-Chairman Rajiv Kumar, the focus of the government in 2019 will be to expedite reforms with a view to accelerate growth. “India will grow at around 7.8 per cent in the next calendar year and investment cycle that has already started picking-up will gather further strength and we will see more private investments,” Kumar said. Experts, however, expect that moderating growth can force the government to spend more before the next general elections and that could lead to fiscal pressures. Global factors such as sudden zoom in crude prices (which are now easing), strengthening US dollar, slowing growth in the wake of US-China trade war and the US Federal Reserve hiking interest rate for the fourth time in a year did take the toll on India’s economy. The banking sector ruled the headlines in 2018. The year opened with India’s biggest banking scam coming to light. On February 14, state-owned Punjab National Bank said it had detected a Rs 11,400 crore scam where billionaire-jeweller Nirav Modi allegedly acquired fraudulent letters of undertaking from a branch in Mumbai to secure overseas credit from other Indian lenders. The case has gathered a long political traction, with the government making little progress in bringing back the absconding accused. The year ended with a rare face-off between the Reserve Bank of India and the Central government. Urjit Patel’s resignation a few weeks later was seen as a culmination of the tussle in December. The main trigger was government’s demand to relax restrictions on weak public-sector lenders, which slowed down credit growth. For the first time, the government threatened to use its special powers under Section 7 of the RBI Act. The cycle of events at the RBI brought to the fore concerns about the RBI’s autonomy. The RBI-government tussle sent shock waves far and wide. The country’s leading infrastructure finance company IL&FS defaulted on payments to lenders. It triggered panic among a large number of investors, banks and mutual funds associated with the company. The IL&FS defaults were even being seen as India’s Lehman Brothers moment that had triggered the global financial crisis in 2008. The government wanted the RBI to provide relief to non-banking finance companies impacted by the IL&FS defaults. However, the economy witnessed a big positive development — the progress made under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code. Tasked with helping recover unpaid corporate loans, the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has helped resolve insolvency and bankruptcy proceedings involving more than Rs 60,000 crore (during Apirl-September 2018-19), and the kitty is expected to swell beyond Rs 1 lakh crore in 2019 with several big-ticket default cases pending. A rapidly depreciating rupee and steeply rising petrol prices played havoc with India’s current account deficit (CAD). It widened to 2.9 per cent of the GDP in the second quarter of the fiscal compared to 1.1 per cent in the year-ago period, mainly due to a large trade deficit. “The widening of the current account deficit amidst tighter global financing conditions should put downward pressure on the currency, and we forecast the INR to weaken to 75 against the dollar by end-2019,” said rating agency Fitch in a report. A good news for the economy was India’s improved ranking on the World Bank’s ‘ease of doing business’ report for the second straight year, jumping 23 places to the 77th position on the back of reforms related to insolvency, taxation and other areas. Collection of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) crossed the Rs 1 lakh crore mark in October, after a gap of five months, but again slipped below the mark to Rs 97,637 crore in November. Yet, it was higher than the average monthly collection in the year. Steady increase in average collection raised hopes of monthly collection to remain above Rs 1 lakh crore next year. Inflation has remained well below the forecasts by the RBI, which targets to keep inflation at 4 per cent in the medium term. During the April-October period, industrial output grew 5.6 per cent as compared to 2.5 per cent in the same period of the previous fiscal. In October, it stood at a 11-month high of 8.1 per cent. On inflation, Dun & Bradstreet in a report said: Going forward, there are concerns over fiscal slippage due to likely expenditure on pre-poll sops before the Lok Sabha elections next year. The Congress party’s promise of universal farm loan waiver, if it comes to power is likely to force the hand of the BJP government, which has so far stuck to fiscal prudence. Having witnessed controversy over host of issues like demonetisation, implementation of GST and the government’s handling of banking sector woes, the year also witnessed political slugfest over revised GDP data, which showed that growth during the previous Congress-led UPA’s regime was less than what was estimated earlier. Recalibrating data of past years, using 2011-12 as the base year instead of 2004-05, the Central Statistics Office (CSO) lowered the country’s economic growth rate during the previous Congress-led UPA’s regime. Economists, including former chief economic advisor Arvind Subramanian, had questioned the involvement of the Niti Aayog in release of GDP back series data and had also called for review by experts to clear doubts over the data.
Source: Financial Express
Eighteen months after the rollout of the goods and services tax, the government had to revise rates and exempt or issue clarifications on close to 400 of the 1,216 items under the new indirect tax levy. The reduction in rates of 23 items by the GST Council in its meeting on December 22 has been preceded by at least four rounds of rate reviews on July 21 and January 18 this year, and November 10 and October 6 last year. An analysis by BusinessLine showed that the GST rates on over 370 goods and services have been reviewed over the last 18 months, and at least 50 clarifications have been issued by government authorities on the rates of various products. “While there has been an extensive movement of products across rate slabs after the introduction of the GST, these movements have helped businesses in having very reasonable rates for many products compared to the pre-GST situation. Since the intention is to eventually converge the 12 per cent and 18 per cent slabs into one rate, these movements serve as steps in that direction, " said MS Mani, Partner, Deloitte India. With just 28 items now left in the highest tax bracket of 28 per cent, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has also indicated more reviews of GST rates going ahead, as the next stage of reforms would be to converge the 18 per cent and 12 per cent tax slabs into a standard rate of 15 per cent. “We transiently put them in the 28 per cent slab. As the revenues kept increasing, we started bringing down the rates,” Jaitley said in a recent post.
Impact on fiscal deficit
Revenue losses are still a concern under GST— with average monthly collections pegged at about ₹97,100 crore — and could result in some fiscal slippage. The fiscal deficit by November-end this year amounted to 114.8 per cent of the Budget estimate. “It (the rate changes) will have an impact on the fiscal deficit situation. They are already short of the targeted revenue collections from the GST and further reduction of rates will hurt the fiscal position. But then they should not have set the revenue targets so high if it was the intention to lower the rates over 18 months,” former Finance Minister P Chidambaram told BusinessLine. “In April-November 2018, Central GST collections stood at a relatively moderate 49 per cent of the Budget estimate for 2018-19, which suggests an impending shortfall relative to the level budgeted by the government for this fiscal. The provisional settlement of the Integrated GST, as well as residual GST compensation cess (after disbursal to states) will be key in augmenting the Centre’s cash flows in the coming months,” said Aditi Nayar, Principal Economist, ICRA.
Source: Business Line
New Delhi: GST collection dropped to Rs 94,726 crore in December 2018, lower than Rs 97,637 crore collected in the previous month. Compliance however improved during the month as the total number of sales returns or GSTR-3B filed in December stood at 72.44 lakh, as against 69.6 lakh filed in November. The finance ministry in a statement said of the Rs 94,726 crore collected, Central GST (CGST) collection was Rs 16,442 crore, State GST (SGST) was Rs 22,459 crore, Integrated GST (IGST) was Rs 47,936 crore and Cess was Rs 7,888 crore. The government has settled Rs 18,409 crore to CGST and Rs 14,793 crore to SGST from IGST as regular settlement, it said. The total revenue earned by central government and state governments after regular settlement in December was Rs 43,851 crore for CGST and Rs 46,252 crore for SGST, the ministry added. The December revenue collections reflect the purchase and sales activities conducted in November. In the nine months (April-December) of the current fiscal, the government has mopped up over Rs 8.71 lakh crore from Goods and Services Tax (GST). The 2018-19 budget had estimated annual GST collection at Rs 13.48 lakh crore, which means a monthly target of Rs 1.12 lakh crore. The monthly average GST collection in last fiscal (July 2017 - March 2018) was Rs 89,885 crore. The GST revenue could see some more pressure in the coming months as the GST Council has cut rates on 23 items effective January 1, 2019. With the recent round of rate cut, only 28 items are left in the highest tax slab of 28 per cent. The rate reduction would have an annual revenue implication of Rs 5,500 crore, which means that in the remaining three months of the current fiscal (January-March) the revenue loss would be about Rs 1,375 crore. "It appears that the GST revenues are stabilising. During this year, we have had rates heading south, hence it would be difficult for revenue to head north immediately," Deloitte India Partner M S Mani said. PwC National Indirect Tax Leader Pratik Jain said GST collections in the next couple of months would be on similar lines and there could be more enforcement and investigation cases. "The government may want to have a more realistic estimate of GST collection for next year. When the new compliance framework comes in from next fiscal, the collections could improve again as there would be greater control over input credit claimed by businesses," Jain said. GST collection stood at Rs 1.03 lakh crore in April, Rs 94,016 crore in May, Rs 95,610 crore in June, Rs 96,483 crore in July, Rs 93,960 crore in August, Rs 94,442 crore in September, Rs 1,00,710 crore in October and Rs 97,637 crore in November. EY Tax Partner Abhishek Jain said the dip in GST revenue collection as compared to the last two months is a bit discouraging. "This may deter the government from rationalising the tax rate of goods left in the 28 per cent category like cement, auto parts, etc in the short term,” he added. PTI JD ANU
Source: The Week
Former FM P Chidambaram says Congress State FMs unlikely to oppose changes in the GST regime for the sake of the Opposition. Convergence of the 18 per cent and 12 per cent rates to a single rate under the Goods and Services Tax will not be an easy task, believes former Finance Minister P Chidambaram. “The government should have started with a single standard rate with a standard minus and a standard plus,” he told BusinessLine in an interview, adding there are still problems with the GST apart from multiple rates. Excerpts: There have been multiple rate changes in the GST. Do you think it was necessary? This is belated wisdom. They should have started with the revenue-neutral rate which was recommended by the then Chief Economic Adviser Arvind Subramanian. However, they started with high rates and now they are persuading or cajoling or threatening manufacturers to reduce the rates.They are holding the threat of the National Anti-Profiteering Authority. Once the prices are set taking into account the high rates of tax, it is not easy to bring it down even if the taxes are lowered. What they have done is completely wrong and we have been pointing it out for the last 18 months.What fiscal impact will the rate changes have? It will hit the fiscal deficit. They are already short of the targeted revenue collections from the GST, and further reduction of rates will hurt the fiscal situation. But then, they should not have set the revenue targets so high if it was the intention to lower the rates over 18 months. Or they should not have set their expenditure targets so high, if they were not confident of getting the budgeted revenue. They have made mistakes on both sides of the balancesheet and they have to pay a price for it. There is talk of converging the 18 per cent and 12 per cent rates into a single standard rate. How easy will that be?It would have been easy had they started with a standard rate, with a standard minus and a standard plus during the transition period. But if you are trying to unscramble a scrambled egg, it will be difficult. The composition of the GST Council has changed with the recent Assembly elections. Will the non-NDA States act as a counter? Even at the last meeting on December 22, Punjab Finance Minister Manpreet Badal protested against the methods followed and the decisions taken. I understand that Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan did not send their Finance Ministers as they had not yet named them. I don’t think the Congress State Finance Ministers will oppose changes in the GST regime for the sake of opposition but, we will press our point of view on how the GST should have been structured originally and what can be done in the remaining three or four months to correct the mistakes. But I think Manpreet Badal was right when he said if the next government is led by or composed of non-BJP parties, there will be a complete re-think on the GST. I think he called it GST-2 but that’s a shorthand way of saying there will be a restructuring. Are there other problems in GST apart from rates? The problem with the GST is not only the rates. Cases are pending in courts, judgments have been delivered by some courts, and these problems are being ignored to create an impression that the only problem is rates.
Source: The Hindu
The exemption, put in place December 28 but backdated to November 5, will allow Indian refiners to settle about $1.5 billion of outstanding payments to NIOC. Those have been building up since Tehran was put under stringent US sanctions in early November. The two countries on November 2 signed a bilateral agreement to settle oil trades through an Indian government-owned bank, UCO Bank, in the Indian currency, which is not freely traded on international markets. However, the income of a foreign company that is deposited in an Indian bank account is subject to a withholding tax of 40 percent plus other levies, leading to a total take by the authorities of 42.5 percent. That made the agreement unworkable for Iran and led to the freeze in payments by the refiners until the exemption could be introduced. Iran will be able to use the rupee funds for a range of expenses - including imports from India, the cost of its missions in the country, direct investment in Indian projects, and its financing of Iranian students in India, according to another government document reviewed by Reuters. It can also invest the funds in Indian government debt securities. "In the previous round of sanctions Iran was allowed to use funds for imports from India but this time we have expanded the scope for use of funds to benefit both nations," said an Indian government official, who declined to be named because of the sensitivity of the issue. The move may help India fix its trade balance, which is currently tilted in favour of Iran. The tax exemption order, though, only refers to crude oil. That means it does not apply to imports of other commodities, such as fertiliser, liquefied petroleum gas and wax. India, Iran's top oil client after China, has turned to paying for Iranian oil in rupees as major banking channels dealing in global currencies are closed off by the U.S. sanctions. "Passing of this notification eases constraints for Indian refiners to make payment," said Sanjay Sudhir, joint Secretary in India's oil ministry. An official from India's top refiner and Iran's top customer in the country, Indian Oil Corp, said his company would start making payments to Iran from January. The finance ministry did not respond to a request for comment. Indian Oil Corp and UCO Bank also did not respond. Last month, the United States introduced the sanctions aimed at crippling Iran's oil revenue-dependent economy because of its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes and its support for militant proxies in the Middle East. Washington did, though, give a six-month waiver from sanctions to eight nations, including India, and allowed them to import some Iranian oil. India's overall imports from Iran totalled about $11 billion in April-November 2018, with oil accounting for about 90 percent of the imports. Iran will be able to register as a foreign portfolio investor, allowing it to invest in Indian government debt. The direct investment provision could help Iran in participating in Indian oil refiner Chennai Petroleum Corp Ltd's expansion plans. Iran owns 15.4 percent of the company.Iran which used to be the third biggest oil supplier to India slipped to No. 6 in November, according to ship tracking data and industry sources.
Source: Economic Times
The Indian rupee kicked off 2019 on a resounding note, building up on gains of the previous two sessions and adding another 34 paise on Tuesday to close at 69.43 against the U.S. dollar on increased selling of the greenback by exporters and smart gains in domestic equities. The domestic unit has rallied by a hefty 92 paise in the last three trading sessions. Traders said sustained selling of the American currency by exporters and banks propped up the rupee. At the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex), the rupee opened on a firm note at 69.63. It gained further to hit a high of 69.43 following dollar selling by exporters, before finally closing at 69.43, up 34 paise. On Monday, the rupee signed off the last trading session of 2018 with 18 paise gains at 69.77 per dollar. However, the domestic currency clocked a 9.23% fall in 2018. On year-over-year basis, the rupee depreciated by a whopping 509 paise, or 9.23%, as compared to 2017-end level of 63.87. Domestic brokerage firm Kotak Institutional Equities in a research report said that the year 2019 seems to be a better starting point in terms of valuation, currency. “The INR seems to be fairly valued; we see mild depreciation in 2019 compared to the sharp correction that it saw in 2018,” the report said. Traders said, a positive trend in the domestic equities also supported the local unit. Indian equity market started the New Year on a positive note, with BSE benchmark Sensex rising over 186 points on Tuesday. The 30-share BSE Sensex closed at 36,254.57, rising 186.24 points or 0.52%. Similarly, the NSE Nifty ended at 10,910.10, gaining 47.55 points or 0.44%.Meanwhile, foreign funds pulled out ₹326.87 crore from the capital markets on a net basis, while domestic institutional investors bought shares worth ₹321.98 crore on Monday, provisional data showed. The dollar index was trading down by 0.31% at 95.87 against a basket of six currencies in the late afternoon trade. The Financial Benchmark India Private Ltd (FBIL) set the reference rate for the rupee/dollar at 69.7131 and for rupee/euro at 79.9330. The reference rate for rupee/British pound was fixed at 88.9748 and for rupee/100 Japanese yen at 63.57.
Source: Financial Express
Maharashtra has stepped up efforts to woo investment in the textiles sector from Tamil Nadu and Karnataka where integrated textile chains are grappling with several problems, including power shortage and niggles from the pollution control boards. Textiles Minister Subhash Deskmukh has urged investors to invest in Maharashtra, which is planning to make Solapur the uniform and textiles hub of India. To showcase the potential, the State government, along with Solapur Garment Manufacturing Association, is organising a three-day uniform, garment and fabric manufacturers’ fair in Bengaluru from January 8. In the last three years, since Solapur was projected as uniform and textiles hub, about 400 textiles units have been set up in Solapur and the State government plans to raise this number to 2,000 by 2022. “Our move is to give an equal opportunity to all stakeholders from the textiles industry to become a part of it,” Mr. Deshmukh said in a statement. Satish Pawar, director, Solapur garments manufacturers association, said the city was gaining significance for garments trade and the uniform & garment exhibition would help it further. The uniform manufacturing industry in India has an aggregate revenue of ₹18,000 crore, out of which ₹10,000 crore is generated from the manufacturing Industry. The rest ₹8,000 crore is through supplies to schools in the form of direct sales by local retailers. “Solapur is witnessing higher demand for school uniforms, kids garments, gents and ladies dresses because of easy availability of transportation, labour and raw materials,” Mr. Deshmukh noted. The government, in its new textiles policy in February last, announced a power tariff of ₹3 per unit for co-operative cotton mills and ₹2 per unit for power looms, cloth processing garment and hosiery units. The State had earmarked ₹150 crore for this purpose. The State government to promote processing of cotton, silk and other raw materials used for traditional and man-made purposes, also announced to invest ₹4,649 crore in various schemes to be implemented under the ‘Fibre to Fashion’ mission from 2018-23.
Source: The Hindu
The Government of Karnataka is considering certain subsidies sought by Sutlej Textiles and Industries Ltd, which is setting up a unit in Chamarajanagar district of the state. The unit is to be set up in Chamarajanagar Industrial Park developed by the Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB). The new unit will initially create 1,500 jobs. Representatives of Sutlej Textiles recently held talks with chief minister HD Kumaraswamy during the latter’s visit to Delhi recently, South Indian media reports said quoting Chamarajanagar MP R Dhruvanarayan. While assuring all help by the state government in setting up the textile unit, Kumaraswamy agreed to consider certain subsidies sought by the Bhawanimandi, Rajasthan-based company. (RKS)
Source: Fibre2fashion
|
Item |
Price |
Unit |
Fluctuation |
Date |
|
PSF |
1277.16 |
USD/Ton |
0.17% |
1/1/2019 |
|
VSF |
1977.17 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
ASF |
2354.43 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
Polyester POY |
1206.65 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
Nylon FDY |
2704.07 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
40D Spandex |
4753.93 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
Nylon POY |
1468.34 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
Acrylic Top 3D |
2544.15 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
Polyester FDY |
2486.00 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
Nylon DTY |
1417.46 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
Viscose Long Filament |
2994.83 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
Polyester DTY |
5480.83 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
30S Spun Rayon Yarn |
2689.53 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
32S Polyester Yarn |
1962.63 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
45S T/C Yarn |
2878.52 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
40S Rayon Yarn |
2994.83 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
T/R Yarn 65/35 32S |
2471.46 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
45S Polyester Yarn |
2108.01 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
T/C Yarn 65/35 32S |
2486.00 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
10S Denim Fabric |
1.34 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
32S Twill Fabric |
0.81 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
40S Combed Poplin |
1.09 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
30S Rayon Fabric |
0.64 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
|
45S T/C Fabric |
0.69 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
1/1/2019 |
Source : Global Textiles
Note: The above prices are Chinese Price (1 CNY = 0.14538USD dtd. 1/1/2019). The prices given above are as quoted from Global Textiles.com. SRTEPC is not responsible for the correctness of the same.
Around 70 per cent of European Parliament lawmakers recently backed the European Union (EU)-Japan agreement that binds two economies accounting for about a third of global gross domestic product and signals their rejection of protectionism by launching the world's largest free trade zone early next year. Japan's parliament also approved it recently. EU trade commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom said the deal would bring clear benefits to EU companies and farmers. The EU-Japan agreement will remove EU tariffs of 10 per cent on Japanese cars and 3 per cent for most car parts. It will scrap Japanese duties of around 30 per cent on EU cheese and 15 per cent on wines as well as open access to public tenders in Japan. It will also open up services markets, such as financial services, telecoms, e-commerce and transport. Critics, however, say the agreement will give too much power to multinationals and could undermine environmental and labour standards, according to a news agency report. Both Brussels and Tokyo reportedly want it in place before Britain leaves the EU at the end of March.
Source: Fibre2Fashion
China has sought talks with India to allay concerns on a regional free trade pact it is spearheading, two people familiar with the matter said, as Beijing seeks newer markets amid the ongoing trade war with the U.S. The 16-country Regional Comprehensive Economic Agreement has been in the works for a while and China is keen to conclude it by end of 2019, the people said, asking not to be identified as the matter is not public. India’s wariness about a possible flood of Chinese goods, and its demand for looser immigration rules for its tech professionals remain sticking points. China’s inability to close the trade deal highlights the continuing suspicion among its Asian trading partners over Beijing’s effort to increase its influence in the region. RCEP, along with the Belt and Road Initiative to build investment and trade links with countries along the old Silk Road to Europe, is a key element in China’s efforts to seize the geopolitical advantage following what many in the region see as a U.S. retreat under President Donald Trump. India’s foreign ministry didn’t immediately respond to a message seeking comments. China’s commerce and foreign affairs ministries didn’t immediately respond to a fax. The meeting is likely to take place before the end of this month, and New Delhi has drawn up a list of issues it will take up with Asia’s largest economy. That includes providing zero-duty access to fewer Chinese goods as opposed to those offered to other members of RCEP. It also will seek a longer period to phase out levies on Chinese goods compared to 20 years offered to the others. India’s imports from China have been rising for a while with the deficit reaching $55.6 billion in 2017 compared to $48.19 billion in 2015. A resolution of the stalemate appears unlikely any time soon as RCEP member countries like Australia, India and Indonesia go into elections in 2019. Apart from China, India is planning to reach out to key players like Singapore and Australia to seek a consensus on these issues.
Source: Financial Express
The US India Chambers of Commerce (USAIC), a wing of the US Chambers of Commerce has urged the Indian government to delay implementation of the new restrictions on e-commerce announced this week. USAIC said that the February 1, 2019, deadline for the restrictions coming into force does not allow sufficient time for companies to analyse the policy and comply. “While we are still trying to understand the full implications, we fear that these restrictions will have a far-reaching negative impact both on US investments and on Indian consumers,” said USAIC president Nisha Desai Biswal, according to media reports. The new policy bars e-commerce companies from entering into agreements for exclusive sale of products. It also bars these companies from selling products of the companies in which they have stake. “An entity having equity participation by e-commerce marketplace entity or its group companies, or having control on its inventory by e-commerce marketplace entity or its group companies, will not be permitted to sell its products on the platform run by such marketplace entity,” said the commerce and industry ministry statement. “Cash back provided by group companies of marketplace entity to buyers shall be fair and non-discriminatory. For the purposes of this clause, provision of services to any vendor on such terms which are not made available to other vendors in similar circumstances will be deemed unfair and discriminatory,” the statement said. Further, e-commerce marketplace entities would be required to furnish a certificate along with a report of statutory auditor to Reserve Bank of India, confirming compliance of guidelines, by September 30 of every year for the preceding financial year. (RKS)
Source: Fibre2Fashion
ADDIS ABABA-- Chinese textile production firm Antex Group has won praise from among Ethiopians as the east African country moves to strengthen its export sector. Antex on Sunday officially started the production of export-oriented textile items inside the premises of the Chinese-built Adama Industrial Park, some 100 km south of the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. The company, which was established with an initial investment of 10 million U.S. dollars, also received widespread acclaim from Ethiopian government officials and local community members for creating about 1,500 jobs.The group's textile products exported from Ethiopia include sportswear, lingerie and casual wear. Antex's plant inside the Adama Industrial Park, the firm's first production line in Africa, is expected to generate an estimated 110,000 dollars from the export of its first batch of products, Group Chairman Qian Anhua told Xinhua on Sunday. "We expect to generate close to 50 million dollars from the export of our products to the international market next year," Qian said. The CEO of Ethiopia Industrial Park Development Corporation (IPDC), Lelise Neme, praised Antex for its success and ambition."The Antex Group has achieved a milestone despite facing various challenges," Neme said. "We would like to see many international markets-bound containers from the company's production line." Neme told Antex officials that the Ethiopian government in general and IPDC in particular are "ready to help you achieve your targets."Ethiopians who have benefited from job opportunities inside the factory also spoke highly of the firm. Tigist Gemechu, who is now a production line coordinator after receiving robust training for six months, recalled that "it was a proud moment for me and my colleagues to witness the official inauguration of the factory."Gemechu, who commended the "valuable life skills and disciplined work ethics" that she received from the Chinese coworkers, said that the company's future targets are achievable given the "great ambition of the company.""Discipline at work, efficient time management and diligent work ethic are the most important qualities that I learned over the past months," she told Xinhua.The official inauguration of Antex on Sunday came amid strong engagement of Chinese companies in Ethiopia's manufacturing sector, which includes the construction of industrial parks across the east African country. Ethiopia has so far commissioned six Chinese-built textile and garment-orientated industrial parks across the country, which is expected to help Ethiopia achieve its annual export target of 30 billion dollars by the year 2025. The Adama Industrial Park, which hosts the Antex Group, was built by China Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC). It was inaugurated by Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in October this year. Early December, Ethiopia also inaugurated the Jimma Industrial Park, which was built by China Communications Construction Company (CCCC). The Jimma Industrial Park is expected to host investors in light manufacturing sectors, mainly agro-processing, textile and apparel products, according to IPDC. The two industrial parks alone are expected to create employment opportunitoes for more than 40,000 Ethiopian youth, according to figures from IPDC. The construciton of industrial parks is part of the government's drive to transform Ethiopia into a manufacturing hub of Africa and to make it a middle-income economy by the year 2025.
Source: Xinhuanet
