The Synthetic & Rayon Textiles Export Promotion Council

MARKET WATCH 17 AUG 2019

National

International

National

Synthetic textile exporters gung-ho about growth

Currently MMF dominates global textile fibre consumption with 72:28 ratio —MMF 72% and natural fibre 28%.

 

Man-made fibre (MMF) industry is contributing 2% to India’s GDP and providing jobs to over 18 million people directly and more than 20 million indirectly and technical textiles are expected to see a significant growth in coming time, according to a textiles export body.

 

Synthetic & Rayon Textiles Export Promotion Council chairman Ronak Rughani said with an increasing focus on protecting environment, the demand for man-made fibre (MMF) textiles as a substitute for cotton is growing globally.

“Globally increasing price volatility, durability and sustainability concerns have made leading fashion brands to gradually shift the fibre mix in favour of synthetic fibres, especially polyester and viscose,” he said.

Currently MMF dominates global textile fibre consumption with 72:28 ratio —MMF 72% and natural fibre 28%.

The share of MMF had been steadily increasing due to cutting-edge technology, its durability and sustainability concerns, he added.

Man-made fibre exports have grown to contribute 16% to the total textile and clothing exports from India worth $40 billion in 2018-19.

“We contribute 2% to India’s GDP and employ more than 18 million people directly and more than 20 million people indirectly. We export entire MMF textile value chain including fibre, yarn, fabrics and made-ups to nearly 140 countries. More than 60% of our exports are of value-added items such as made ups and fabrics,” Rughani said in a statement here.

India produces over 1,441 million kg of MMF and over 3,000 million kg of man-made filaments annually. India is the second largest producer of polyester and viscose in the world.

Source: Financial Express

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Stimulus package will be announced at the right time: Sitharaman

Discussion going on with PMO; no relief for gems and jewellery sector

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday stated that discussions on a possible stimulus package for industry are going on at the highest level and an announcement will come at a right time.

Referring to a number of industries and sectors grappling with a slowdown in demand and dwindling sales, Sitharaman stated that a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi had taken place on Thursday. “...we shall meet again. It is not the right time to talk about the road-map or packages. Discussions are on with the Prime Minister’s Office and in the government. Details will be announced at the right time,” she told mediapersons in Ahmedabad.

She, however, refused to say whether the government had already prepared a roadmap to boost economy nor did she give any timeline for the expected stimulus package.

The Finance Minister had earlier met several industry groups, associations and business leaders from various sectors including auto, banking, telecom to get a sense of the key issues plaguing them.

She declined any possibility of relief to gems and jewellery sector amid higher import duty — a demand placed by the sector after the hike in the duty. “We do not produce that in the country. When we buy product not available in the country and spend so much of foreign exchange, do we need to subsidise it?” Sitharaman said.

The Finance Minister addressed a joint session with the officers and officials of the Income Tax department and Central Goods and Service Tax, Central Excise and Customs departments in Gujarat. This was the first in a series of meetings to be held in Metros and Tier-2 cities.

Sitharaman also released a second edition of ‘A Step Ahead’ — a handbook of Income Tax department and inaugurated the pan-Gujarat online portal of the income-tax free legal aide cell. She also released a handbook on the MSME sector and GST flyers prepared by the CGST department.

Source: The Business Line

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Rupee declines 12 paise against US dollar in early trade

The rupee slipped 12 paise to 71.39 against the US dollar in the early morning trade on Friday. On Wednesday, the domestic currency rebounded from a six-month low to end at 71.27, up 13 paise.

The forex market was closed on Thursday on account of Independenece Day.

"The Indian rupee has now become Asia's worst performing currency so far this month, Chinese yuan depreciated amid trade worries and foreign investor outflows," said V K Sharma, Head-PCG & Capital Market Strategy at HDFC Securities.

However, a recent poll by Reuters suggested rupee will recoup this year’s losses against the dollar over the coming 12 months as the issuance of sovereign bonds in foreign currencies may help prop it up.

“In the second half of the year, what we are looking for is some sort of positive news on the US-China trade war and maybe a little bit more (rupee) gains if the sovereign bonds issuance comes through,” Reuters reported quoting Sakshi Gupta, senior Treasury economist at HDFC Bank, as saying.

On the domestic front, data showed India’s trade deficit was at $13.43billion as compared to $18.63 billion in the same period last year. Gold imports declined 42.2 per cent to $1.71 billion in July. Oil imports fell 22 per cent to $9.6 billion, while non-oil slipped by 6 per cent to $30.16 billion.

"Weakness in emerging market currencies also accelerated as the interest rates on some long-dated government bonds have fallen below the level for short-term debt. The inversion rattled investors already worried that a US-China trade war might trigger a slowdown in global growth. Today, USD/INR pair is expected to quote in the range of 71.10 and 71.80," said Motilal Oswal Financial Services (MOFSL) in the daily currency report.

On the global front, Asian shares were heading for weekly losses on Friday as conflicting messages on the Sino-US trade war only added to worries for the global economy, while talk of aggressive central bank stimulus drove bond yields to fresh lows, said a Reuters report.

In the commodities market, oil prices were trying to bounce after two days of sharp losses. Brent crude futures added 23 cents to $58.46, while US crude rose 33 cents to $54.80 a barrel, the report added.

Source: The Business standard

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Exports up 2.25 per cent in July; trade deficit narrows to four-month low

India's exports growth turned positive in July, spurting 2.25 per cent, while trade deficit narrowed to a four-month low of USD 13.43 billion, government data showed on Wednesday.
Exports increased to USD 26.33 billion in July as against USD 25.75 billion in the same month last year.
Decline in overall imports, including oil and gold, led to narrowing of the trade deficit -- the difference between imports and exports.
Trade deficit in July 2018 stood at USD 18.63 billion. The previous low was in March 2019, when this gap was at USD 10.89 billion.
Gold imports declined 42.2 per cent to USD 1.71 billion in July. Oil imports fell 22.15 per cent to USD 9.6 billion, while non-oil slipped by 5.92 per cent to USD 30.16 billion.
Export sectors that showed positive growth in the last month included chemical, iron ore, electronics, marine products and pharmaceuticals.
However, shipments of some key sectors recorded negative growth, including gems and jewellery (- 6.82 per cent), engineering goods (- 1.69 per cent) and petroleum products (- 5 per cent), according to the data.

Cumulatively, during April-July 2019, exports dipped 0.37 per cent to USD 107.41 billion, while imports contracted by 3.63 per cent to USD 166.8 billion.
Trade deficit during the four-month period narrowed to USD 59.39 billion as compared to USD 65.27 billion in the same period last fiscal.
Oil imports in April-July 2019-20 were at USD 44.45 billion, which was 5.69 per cent lower as compared to USD 47.13 billion in the same period last year.
Commenting on the data, Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) said the sluggish global demand and uncertainties emanating from tariff wars are clearly visible in the slowdown in exports across the globe.
"Domestic issues including access to credit, cost of credit especially for merchant exporters, interest equalisation support to all agri exports, benefits on sales to foreign tourists and quick refund of GST should be seriously looked into," FIEO President Sharad Kumar Saraf said.
Trade Promotion Council of India (TPCI) Chairman Mohit Singla said to some extent this export growth is partially on account of rupee, which has depreciated by about 3.5 per cent in the past six weeks, which gives an impetus for short-term export gains.
"Since the consumption rates in India have plummeted, demand has been squeezed, especially for precious stones and electronic goods," Singla said.
India's exports growth entered the negative zone after a gap of eight months in June, recording a decline of 9.71 per cent, amid global headwinds.
The World Bank in its Global Economic Prospects (June 2019) has projected weakening of global trade in 2019.
Global trade is projected to grow at 2.6 per cent this year, a full percentage point below its previous forecast.

Source: The Economic Times

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Customs to recover export benefits claimed on reimported goods

As for new cases of reimports, exporters have to a provide a ‘no incentive certificate’ from the regional authority (RA) of the Directorate General of Foreign Trade at the time of reimports.

New Delhi: Tax authorities will soon start recovery of exports benefits claimed on goods that were reimported in the past under some incentive schemes, a decision that will impact some exporters.
The Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs (CBIC) has sent out a directive to tax officials following observations by Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) that there was no provision in earlier customs notifications to recover the duty benefit claimed on exports on reimport of the merchandise.
As for new cases of reimports, exporters have to a provide a ‘no incentive certificate’ from the regional authority (RA) of the Directorate General of Foreign Trade at the time of reimports.
“…before allowing clearance in cases of reimport of exported goods, a ‘no-incentive certificate’ from the respective RA of DGFT shall be ensured by customs field formations,” the CBIC directive said.
This certificate will be provided only when the duty benefits claimed have been surrendered.
ET has seen a copy of the CBIC directive.
The move comes in the backdrop of differences between departments of commerce and revenue over continuation of Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS), introduced in 2015 by replacing five previous incentive schemes to promote merchandise exports. While the revenue department favours discontinuation of the scheme, the commerce department wants an extension, people familiar with the matter said.
MEIS comes under incentive and reward schemes of the Foreign Trade Policy.
The government is now using a provision under the Reserve Bank of India rules regarding refund of incentives taken when exported goods are reimported.
Reimports can happen due to many reasons, including the buyer of exported goods not being satisfied with the quality of the goods or they not meeting specifications.
Reimports also happen when goods are sent out for exhibition, samples, or testing, and then are returned to the country.
The Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs has also asked customs officials to review past cases of reimport of exported goods and take necessary action for recovery of inadmissible duty credit. The board has asked for a compliance report by September 30.
Tax experts say trade needs to ensure they repay the benefits.
“Given that customs will now be closely monitoring the compliance, trade needs to ensure that they are aligned with requirement to repay benefit,” said Rahul Shukla, executive director at PwC.

 

Source: The Economic Times

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India Inc widens road to China after TrumpXi trade war

Travel to China on the rise with entrepreneurs and businesses keen to take advantage of opportunities in neighbouring country.

Business travel from India to China has been growing steadily as more entrepreneurs and businesses appear keen on taking advantage of opportunities in the world‘s second-biggest economy. The trend picked up after the US and China began a trade war through increased and retaliatory tariffs as well as other measures last year. Business travel services providers and online portals said demand for India-China business travel has swelled for business conferences, conventions and fairs besides other company work. Apart from Beijing and Shanghai, Indians are increasingly travelling to Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Shenzhen and Chengdu. American travel management firm CWT said business travel from India to China rose 12% in the year ended June from the year earlier. CWT manages business travel, meetings and events for companies, governments and NGOs. ―While all major cities have shown positive growth, travel operators are seeing a sharp increase in traffic from India to cities like Hangzhou and Chengdu, which are some of China‘s leading IT and manufacturing hubs,‖ said CWT India CEO Vishal Sinha.

Little Traffic in Reverse Direction

Thomas Cook saw business travel to China rise more than 20% in the January-July period from the year earlier, said Indiver Rastogi, president and group head of global business travel at Thomas Cook India NSE -2.03 % . Sectors that saw an increase in demand for Thomas Cook included Mumbai-Beijing, Mumbai-Shanghai/Pudong and Delhi-Chengdu he said.

There doesn‘t seem to be as much traffic in the reverse direction — Chinese coming to India.

―We are also working on getting more Chinese travellers to India but I guess they are smarter than us,‖ said Chander Mansharamani, vice chairman of the India Convention Promotion Bureau (ICPB). ―China has been holding a lot of conferences and MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) events and a good number of Indians are going for these events and promotional activities. Earlier, they rarely advertised such events or had roadshows.‖ ICPB markets India as a convention destination and works directly with the tourism ministry.

US President Donald Trump said this month that an additional 10% tariff will be applied on $300 billion of Chinese goods from September 1. But the US trade representative‘s office later removed some items from the list of targeted goods and delayed the implementation of new tariffs on some products until December 15. Growth rates for China are well ahead of other destinations this year, said Sharat Dhall, chief operating office, B2C, Yatra.com. Rajnish Kumar, cofounder of Ixigo, said his company has seen a 27% rise in business travel to China. ―There is a lot of SME (small and medium enterprises) travel to China for official work and fairs, and business travel is happening across sectors like pharmaceuticals and manufacturing,‖ Dhall said. ―If you compare on an overall basis, the outbound market for India must be growing at10-12% but outbound numbers to China are growing at double that rate.‖ SD Nandakumar, president and country head for B2B and foreign exchange at SOTC Travel, said China has seen an uptick from Indian travellers owing to ease of travel, strengthened trade ties andextensive social and people-to-people exchanges. For Booking.com, the top destinations from India to China between January and August included Guangzhou, Shanghai, Beijing and Shenzhen. While reduced capacity due to the Jet Airways grounding posed some constraints, the introduction of new flights by multiple airlines to China via hubs such as Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur helped boost demand, said Rastogi of Thomas Cook India.

Source: Economic Times

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International

Garment wars: Japan backs Ethiopia's effort to build up exports

Itochu to boost productivity in African alternative to Asian workshops

Japanese trading house Itochu will provide support for Africa's textile industry, starting in Ethiopia, which has emerged as an alternative production base to Asia, Nikkei has learned.

Apparel production has been shifting from China to other Asian countries, such as Myanmar. But rising wages in Asia have increased the appeal of Africa, which offers substantial savings on personnel.

Itochu's plans are believed to mark the first full-scale production by a Japanese company in the eastern African country of roughly 100 million. The average Ethiopian monthly wage of $50 is around a tenth that in China and well below the $100 to $300 levels of Southeast Asia.

Ethiopia's low labor costs have prompted such Western brands as The Gap and H & M Hennes & Mauritz, as well as Chinese and Indian apparel companies, to make inroads there.

Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing considered production in Ethiopia. Other major Japanese apparel companies have outsourced production to Ethiopia under short-lived arrangements. But low productivity remains a challenge.

Itochu has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Ethiopian Textile Industry Development Institute on promoting the textile sector.

The company will dispatch its own employees in addition to five outside Japanese experts to two factories in northern Ethiopia's Tigre region. The plants will make apparel for export to Japan.

Itochu handles clothing manufacturing, from spinning to sewing, in such bases as Vietnam and Myanmar. Using know-how acquired in Asia, it aims to quintuple Ethiopian manufacturing efficiency in three years by reviewing production steps and labor management. Equipment upgrades will also be considered.

An Ethiopian worker is said to produce only about a tenth as much apparel of a Chinese counterpart in a given time, thanks partly to China's advances in training and mechanization. And while there are textile companies that export from Ethiopia to Europe, strict Japanese quality standards have kept continuous shipments to Japan from becoming a reality. With the Tokyo International Conference on African Development coming up in Yokohama later this month, corporate Japan is expected to step up efforts to support industry on the continent.

Just 12 Japanese companies had a physical presence in Ethiopia as of October 2017, according to Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs -- far short of the 282 in South Africa and 54 in Kenya.

 

Source: Nikkei Asian Review

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Vietnam: MoIT considers safeguard measures for apparel sector under CPTPP

The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) is drafting a circular providing guidance for the application of safeguard measures for textile and apparel products under the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

CPTPP is the first ―new-generation‖ free trade agreement (FTA) that Việt Nam has signed. It officially took effect on January 14 this year.

With 11 member countries and high tariff reduction commitments, the use of legal tools to protect the domestic industry is likely to occur. Therefore, the ministry said it was essential to issue guidelines for measures to safeguard against the risk of increasing imports. They include transitional and emergency action measures.

The transition period for Việt Nam‘s textile and apparel products is up to five years. During this period, Việt Nam can employ transitional and emergency measures when the investigating authority concludes there is an absolute increase in imports or an increase relative to domestic production from one or more member countries as the result of tax cuts under CPTPP. The measures can also be applied if the domestic manufacturing industry suffers serious damage or threat of such damage.

Transitional measures can include the suspension of tax cuts for textile and garment products under the agreement or increasing the tax rate but not exceeding the most favoured nation (MFN) rate effective at the time of applying the measure or the MFN rate effective on the day prior to the valid agreement, whichever is lower.

Transitional measures can be applied for two years and can be extended for one more year if the investigating agency concludes it is necessary to prevent or remedy serious damage and facilitate the adjustment of the domestic manufacturing industry.

If the measures are applied for more than one year, the ministry must gradually loosen the safeguards over time.

For emergency measures, investigative work must finish within six months of beginning. In special cases, investigations may last up to nine months. lower. Emergency action cannot exceed two years and may be extended another two years.

The draft circular is open for public comment on the ministry‘s website.

Building regulations for trade remedy measures is one of the MoIT‘s key tasks for the rest of this year in order to strengthen investigative industries and protect the Vietnamese manufacturing industry as new-generation FTAs come into force and protectionism rises around the world.

Source: Vietnam News

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Trump says China talks 'productive' but Beijing vows tariff retaliation

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that US and Chinese negotiators were holding "productive" trade talks and expected them to meet in September despite US tariffs on over $125 billion worth of Chinese imports taking effect Sept 1.

"September, the meeting is still on as I understand it, but I think more importantly than September, we're talking by phone, and we're having very productive talks," Trump told reporters in New Jersey.

He said US and Chinese officials had "a very good conversation" earlier this week, before his administration delayed until Dec. 15 tariffs on over $150 billion in Chinese imports, including toys, cell phones, and laptop and tablet computers.

Nonetheless, China on Thursday vowed to counter the latest US tariffs on $300 billion of Chinese goods but called on the United States to meet it halfway on a potential trade deal.

Trump said he did not think Beijing would retaliate for the US tariffs and that he believes China wants to make a trade deal.

"I think we're having very good discussions with China. They very much want to make a deal," Trump told reporters. He said he had a call scheduled soon with Chinese President Xi Jinping, but he did not say when.

"I think the longer it goes the stronger we get," Trump said of the trade war. "I have a feeling it's going to go fairly short," he said.

The Chinese finance ministry said in a statement that Washington's tariffs violated a consensus reached between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping at a June summit in Japan to resolve their disputes via negotiation.

In a separate statement, China's foreign ministry spokeswoman, Hua Chunying, said, "We hope the US will meet China halfway, and implement the consensus of the two heads of the two countries in Osaka."

China hopes to find mutually acceptable solutions through dialogue and consultation on the basis of equality and mutual respect, she added.

Trump, who is seeking re-election in 2020 and had made the economy and his tough stance on China a key part of his 2016 campaign for the White House, on Thursday said any agreement must meet US demands.

"China, frankly, would love to make a deal, and it's got to be a deal on proper terms. It's got to be a deal, frankly, on our terms. Otherwise, what's the purpose?" Trump said in an interview on New Hampshire radio station WGIR.

China will resolutely counter any provocation to the end, the Communist Party's official People's Daily wrote in a commentary on Friday.

"By the looks of it, they know they will hit a brick wall in a cul-de-sac at some point, so now they are but slowing their pace and delaying the hit," the People's Daily wrote.

"By not turning back, they will ultimately hit the wall and break their heads."

The trade picture is further complicated by continuing unrest in Hong Kong. Trump on Wednesday tied the situation to any possible agreement, saying Xi must first resolve the issues in the territory with protesters.

On Thursday, he used Twitter to call on the Chinese president to personally meet with protesters to spur "a happy and enlightened ending to the Hong Kong problem."

Trump and Xi in June had agreed to restart trade talks after negotiations stalled earlier this year. But earlier this month, the Trump administration said it would slap duties beginning Sept. 1 on $300 billion of Chinese goods, which would effectively cover all of China's exports to the United States. He said the partial delay to Dec. 15 for about half the list was aimed at sparing retailers and consumers pain during the Christmas selling season.

The tariff plan has roiled global markets and further unnerved investors as the trade dispute between the world's two largest economies stretches into its second year with no end in sight.

Source: The Business Standard

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Shared Afghanistan interests create opening for US-Iran back channel talks: Sources

Western intermediaries are trying to persuade arch foes Iran and the United States to cooperate on bolstering security in Afghanistan as US President Donald Trump seeks to extract America from its longest war, according to three source familiar with the efforts.

The intermediaries, the sources say, secretly have been relaying messages between Washington and Tehran for months in hopes of getting the sides talking at a time of heightened hostility on a range of issues.

“Afghanistan is one area where there is common ground,” one source with knowledge of the correspondence told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The White House declined to comment and the US State Department did not respond to requests for comment. Iran officially denies any back channel talks with the United States over any topic.

The United States and Iran share an interest in ensuring that a departure of the more than 20,000 US-led foreign troops does not plunge Afghanistan into a civil war that restores the Taliban's harsh version of Islamic rule, and does not allow al-Qaeda or other Sunni Muslim extremist groups to expand there.

“Moreover, with US sanctions hammering its economy, Tehran wants to avoid Afghans fleeing to neighbouring Iran if there was a surge in blood letting,” regional experts said, as has happened over decades of war in the central Asian country.

Trump and Tehran have another shared interest: Both want US troops out of Afghanistan.

There are no signs, however, that either Tehran or Washington are ready to put aside disputes over Iran's nuclear programme and US and Iranian activities and alliances in West Asia to cooperate on Afghanistan.

‘Over-zealous shortcut’

One message seen by Reuters and conveyed to Washington outlined Iran's concerns with the Trump administration's negotiations with the Taliban on a US troop withdrawal and intra-Afghan talks on a political settlement.

Afghan-born veteran US diplomat Zalmay Khalilzad has erred in taking “over-zealous shortcuts by talking directly to the Taliban,” a senior Iranian official said in the message.

This approach has given “political supremacy” to the Taliban as they are gaining militarily, the message said. Taliban leaders, it continued, have told their Iranian interlocutors they will not “accept anything less than a Taliban-dominated government” that rules “an Islamic emirate”.

Shi'ite Muslim-dominated Iran long has been wary of the Sunni Muslim Taliban. It nearly went to war during Taliban rule when the militants killed at least eight Iranian diplomats and an Iranian journalist in 1998.

Terms for talks

Direct contact between Iran and the United States would be a stark contrast to the tensions that took them to the brink of military confrontation after Iran downed an unmanned US drone in the Gulf in June and Trump then halted a retaliatory air strike on Iran's coast.

While Iran is open to talks, it wants at the very least a suspension of US sanctions designed to slash its oil exports to zero, Tehran's main source of income, according to two sources familiar with the US and Iranian positions.

Iranian officials believe that a new peace process should be devised in which the Afghan government — which has been excluded from the US-Taliban talks in Qatar — played a “dominant” role, the message said.

Several back-channel efforts, the sources said, are driven by a hope that cooperation on Afghanistan could lead to negotiations to lower the tensions ignited when Trump pulled the United States out of the 2015 international agreement designed to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon in exchange for sanctions relief.

But one source familiar with the US and Iranian positions said as far as Iran was concerned, if Washington acknowledged common interests in Afghanistan “and is willing to talk to Iran on the basis of equality about those common interests, then Iran will talk to the United States.” Now all Iran is getting from the United States is that they have no common interests, the source added.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and National Security Adviser John Bolton oppose any sanctions relief for Iran and were opposed to any talks on Afghanistan, believing Tehran will give in to US demands, one of the sources said, who asked not to be identified. The US State Department declined comment.

One former Afghan official pointed out that since the 2001 US-led invasion to oust the Taliban government, Iran has built ties to the Taliban that it could use to help shape a peace settlement and a US troop withdrawal.

‘Good opportunity’

Iran “could be very valuable,” said Ali Jalali, who served as Afghanistan's first post-Taliban interior minister. “This is a very good opportunity for Iran.”

Tehran maintains high-level Taliban contacts and is a haven for some insurgent families. It has supplied limited quantities of weapons to the insurgents to keep pressure on US forces near its border, according to Western officials.

Pompeo has accused Iran of being a “co-conspirator” of the Taliban. But some regional experts counter that Tehran is hedging its bets in case the militants return to power. It also sees the Taliban as a counter force to Islamic State's Afghan affiliate.

Tehran also wields influence in Kabul, having backed Afghan governments for nearly two decades.

Iran maintains close ties with the Shi'ite Hazaras, Afghanistan’s third largest ethnic group, and strongmen of other ethnic minorities.

Washington and Tehran, regional experts said, also share the goal of preventing Afghanistan from reverting to a base of Sunni Muslim extremist groups, especially an affiliate of Islamic State, whose avowed enemies include the United States and Iran.

Whether Iran can play a meaningful role in any peace effort, or that Washington would allow it to do so, is an open question, said Ryan Crocker, a former US ambassador to Kabul.

“I'm pretty sceptical that they (the intermediaries) will get any traction...because of the policy this administration has developed on Iran. I'm afraid that ship has sailed.”

Source: The Business Line

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Open for business, not for sale: Greenland tells Donald Trump

Trump is due to visit Copenhagen in September and the Arctic will be on the agenda during meetings with the prime ministers of Denmark and Greenland.

No thanks, we're not for sale, aghast Greenland tells Trump

Copenhagen: Greenland on Friday dismissed the notion that it might be up for sale after reports that US President Donald Trump had privately discussed with his advisers the idea of buying the world’s biggest island. “We are open for business, but we’re not for sale,” Greenland’s foreign minister Ane Lone Bagger told Reuters.
Trump is due to visit Copenhagen in September and the Arctic will be on the agenda during meetings with the prime ministers of Denmark and Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory.
Talk of a Greenland purchase was first reported by the Wall Street Journal. Two sources familiar with the situation told Reuters that the notion had been laughed off by some advisers as a joke but was taken more seriously by others in the White House.
Danish politicians on Friday poured scorn on the idea. “It has to be an April Fool’s joke. Totally out of season,” former Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen on Twitter. “If he is truly contemplating this, then this is final proof, that he has gone mad,” foreign affairs spokesman for the Danish People’s Party, Soren Espersen, told broadcaster DR. “The thought of Denmark selling 50,000 citizens to the United States is completely ridiculous,” he said.
Greenland, a self-ruling part of Denmark located between the North Atlantic and Arctic oceans, is dependant on Danish economic support. It handles its own domestic affairs while Copenhagen looks after defence and foreign policy.
"I am sure a majority in Greenland believes it is better to have a relation to Denmark than the United States, in the long term," Aaja Chemnitz Larsen, Danish MP from Greenland’s second-largest party Inuit Ataqatigiit (IA), told Reuters. ”My immediate thought is ‘No, thank you,’” she said.

Source: The Economic Times

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