Commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal is in the US to hold talks with US Trade Representative Robert E. Lighthizer later on Wednesday (Washington time). India is pushing for a complete restoration of duty-free export benefits under the so-called Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) by the Trump administration, and not just a partial relief as indicated by the US earlier, as the two sides are in an advanced stage of hammering out broad contours of a limited trade deal. Commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal is in the US to hold talks with US Trade Representative Robert E. Lighthizer later on Wednesday (Washington time). The limited deal could cover India’s willingness to extend greater market access in agriculture and also sweeten its initial offer on easing price caps in medical equipment, especially stents, a source told FE. India is considering loosening its price control regime for medical devices and applying trade margin on coronary stents and knee implants at the first point of sale (price to stockiest), instead of imposing it on the landed prices, as was planned initially. For its part, the US is willing to only partially restore the GSP benefits for India — which stood at $240 million in 2018, said the source. Goyal’s visit is aimed at narrowing differences over the deal that is being negotiated by the two sides for months now. “The two sides are targeting low-hanging fruits first and decisions on the more difficult matters will be taken later, when they will go for a broader deal,” said the source. The visit takes place at a time when India has pulled out of the RCEP free trade deal, backed by China, and is toying with the idea of a trade pact with the world’s largest economy. A broader deal with the US could be clinched later when both the sides end differences over the American demand that India scrap or cut duties (20%) on seven ICT products — including high-end cell phones and smart watches, according to the source. On Thursday, Goyal will be meeting Scott Walker, the president of AdvaMed, the American medical device trade association that has lobbied Washington to impress upon New Delhi to remove its price cap regime for medical devices. The US also wants India to abolish/cut “not justified” tariff on motorcycles (50%), automobiles (60%) and alcoholic beverages (150%). It is seeking better trade balance with India through greater market access in agriculture and dairy products. Similarly, Washington wants New Delhi to remove price caps on medical devices like stents, a move that will help American companies like Abbott. The US has also expressed concern over what it thinks India’s “frequent changes” to e-commerce FDI rules, and data localisation. For its part, India is pitching for an exemption from the extra duty imposed by the US on steel and aluminium, resumption of the GSP benefits and greater market access for its products in sectors ranging from agriculture, automobile and auto components to engineering goods. The “limited deal” was earlier expected to be announced after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with American President Donald Trump in New York on September 24. While the US has been seeking greater concessions from India, it’s reluctant to respond commensurately with its offers and address India’s concerns; instead, it’s still using the issue of its trade deficit with India to extract more from New Delhi, a source had told FE earlier. US President Donald Trump has already indicated that the two countries will announce a “limited trade” deal soon before sealing a broader trade deal (perhaps a free trade agreement). India fears that it could lose as much as $3.2 billion a year in customs revenue if it scraps duties on the seven ICT products to accede to US demand. India’s trade surplus with the US has been shrinking in the past two years, as it has stated importing oil and gas from the largest economy, something that India has been highlighting. According to the US government data, New Delhi’s trade surplus with Washington eased to $21.3 billion in 2018 from $22.9 billion in 2017. In contrast, China’s trade surplus with the US widened further to a record $419.2 billion last year from $375.6 billion in 2017, despite the tariff war between the top two economies. The drop in India’s trade surplus is important, given that the US’ overall goods trade deficit zoomed further in 2018 to $878.7 billion from $795.7 billion a year before. India’s surplus with the world’s largest economy stood at $24.4 billion in 2016.
Source: Financial Express
'Views may be supplemented and justified by relevant statistical information about the production, prices, revenue implication of the changes suggested'The finance ministry for the first time has sought suggestions on changes in direct and indirect tax rates from the industry. This comes at a time when a revenue shortfall and consumption slowdown are threatening to upset the government’s finances. In a letter to industry associations, the department of revenue has sought suggestions for “changes in the duty structure, rates and broadening of tax base on both direct and indirect taxes”. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced tax cuts for the corporate sector besides other sops after the Budget in July as urgent measures to arrest economic slowdown. Sitharaman will be presenting her second Union Budget on February 1. The comments need to be sent to the department by November 21. The finance ministry will begin its pre-Budget consultations with representatives of different sectors and stakeholders. “Your suggestions and views may be supplemented and justified by relevant statistical information about the production, prices, revenue implication of the changes suggested and any other information to support your proposal,” the ministry said. Sitharaman in September announced steep cuts in corporation tax, effective April 1 this fiscal year. The corporation tax rate was cut to 22 per cent from 30 per cent for existing companies that do not enjoy any exemptions, and to 15 per cent from 25 per cent for new manufacturing companies. With surcharge and cess, the effective tax rate for the existing companies has come down to 25.17 per cent from 35 per cent. As against initial estimates of a revenue outgo of Rs 1.45 trillion, the income tax department is estimating a reduction of around Rs 1 trillion. The corporation tax rate cut has triggered a demand for a reduction in personal income tax rates as well. However, revenue collections have emerged as a big concern for the government with the corporation tax mop-up at 0.5 per cent in the first seven months as against a target growth rate of 15.4 per cent. Similarly, personal income tax has shown a growth rate of just 5 per cent so far, against a target of 22 per cent for FY20. As for indirect taxes, goods and services tax collection has been much below expectations. India’s growth fell to a six-year low of 5 per cent in the April-June quarter and is estimated to slump to around 4 per cent in the second quarter. The official data on Q2 gross domestic product will be released on November 30. “As regards direct taxes, while forwarding your proposals, please take into consideration the recent initiatives of the government to reduce corporate tax rates applicable to domestic companies” provided they do not avail of any other tax rebate or concession, the letter said. The panel to overhaul the Income-Tax Act, headed by Central Board of Direct Taxes member Akhilesh Ranjan, has suggested an increase in the threshold for exemption from income tax to Rs 5 lakh a year from the current Rs 2.5 lakh. Besides, a new slab of 35 per cent for those earning Rs 2 crore and more has been recommended. It has also recommended retaining the long-term capital gains tax and the securities transaction tax while abolishing the dividend distribution tax. The panel has instead suggested imposing tax on the person receiving dividend, sources in the know said. “The government policy with reference to direct taxes in the medium term is to phase out tax incentives, deductions, and exemptions while simultaneously rationalising the rates of tax. It would be also desirable that while forwarding the suggestions/recommendations, positive externalities arising out of the said recommendations and their quantification are also indicated,” it said. It has also sought suggestions related to central excise duty and Customs duty.
Source: Business Standard
The textile industries have slashed output and keeping units shut for 5-6 days in a week due to escalated cost of operations after upward revision in power tariffs. After raw material, power is the next major expense for textile mills. Electricity forms about 15 per cent of the production cost in industry. Madhya Pradesh Textile Mills Association has demanded power at Rs 2 per unit incentive to existing textile units to aid them operate and compete in global market. The association has claimed that the upward revision has escalated cost of operations in existing textile mills by around 7 per cent. “Unlike new industries and those in Special Economic Zone that get subsidies on power, existing textile mills should also get incentives on power tariff. Despite being an electricity surplus state, power tariff is higher in state,” the association chairman Akhilesh Rathi said. According to the textile association for existing textile mills with high load factor electricity tariff is Rs 7.30 per unit, while for units with low load factor electricity is expensive by another 5 per cent. The association in a letter to state government has demanded that like other states including Maharashtra, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, which have allowed reduction of Rs 2 per unit to 3 per unit to existing textile mills, Madhya Pradesh should also give power subsidies to existing units to protect employment in the textile sector, which is the largest employer in the country after agriculture. Rathi said, “Regional textile mills are failing to compete in the global market due to high cost of operations.” “To manage the situation mills are shutting down operations for a few days in a week. This has affected both production and employment,” the association secretary MC Rawat said.
Source: Times of India
India is the world's most "open and investment friendly" economy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told business leaders of the BRICS group in Brasalia, urging them to invest in the country and take advantage of its "limitless" possibilities. Modi said on Thursday the five countries of the BRICS bloc were reporting economic growth at a time of global economic slowdown. "India is the most open and investment friendly economy in the world due to political stability, predictable policy and business friendly reforms. By 2024, we want to make India a five-trillion-dollar economy. The infrastructure alone requires $1.5 trillion investment," he said at the BRICS Business Forum. "I invite the business of BRICS countries to build and grow their presence in India," he said as he spoke about his country’s "limitless" possibilities and "countless" opportunities. "BRICS countries account for 50 per cent of the world's economic growth. Despite the recession in the world, BRICS countries accelerated economic growth, drove millions out of poverty and achieved new breakthroughs in technology and innovation. Now ten years after the founding of BRICS, this forum is a good platform to consider the direction of our efforts in the future." The prime minister said simplifying intra-BRICS business will increase mutual trade and investment. "Tax and customs procedures between us five countries are getting easier. The business environment is getting easier with the collaboration between intellectual property rights, and banks. I request the BRICS Business Forum to study the necessary business initiatives to take full advantage of the opportunities thus generated," he said. "I would also like to request that priority areas in business be identified among us for the next ten years and based on them blue print of Intra-BRICS collaboration should be made," Modi said. The prime minister said the market size, diversity and complementarities of the members of the BRICS countries were very beneficial to each other and urged the forum to map such complementarities in the five countries. "If one BRICS country has technology, the other is related to raw materials or markets. Such possibilities are especially in electric vehicles, digital technology, fertilizer, agricultural products, food processing. I would urge the forum to map such complementarities in five countries. I would also like to suggest that at least five such areas should be identified by the next BRICS Summit in which joint ventures can be formed between us on the basis of complementarities," he said. "Important initiatives like innovation BRICS Network, and BRICS Institution for Future Network will be considered during tomorrow's summit. I request the private sector to join these efforts focused on human resources. Connecting young entrepreneurs with these initiatives will also give more strength to business and innovation," Modi said. The prime minister said there was a possibility of making travel, business and employment between the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) countries more easy. He thanked President of Brazil Jair Bolsonaro for his government's decision to give Indians visa-free entry in his country. Modi is in Brazil for the 11th BRICS Summit, which will focus on building mechanisms for counter-terrorism cooperation and strengthen India's ties with the world's five major economies.
Source: Business Standard
November 4, 2019 shall go down as an historic milestone for India’s bold decision to stay away from the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). The decision also cements India’s growing stature as a country that is rock solid in its resolve to not only protect its own interests, but also to boldly ward off any attempts to being arm-twisted. Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership, New India reflects a new selfconfidence. India’s not joining RCEP was summed up by the PM himself: ‘Whenever I try and gauge India’s interest in light of her joining RCEP, I do not get an answer in the affirmative; neither Gandhiji’s policy of self-reliance nor my wisdom allows me to join RCEP.’ What makes this decision significant is that this has yet again demonstrated that the PM can go to any extent to safeguard the interests of farmers, small and medium enterprises (SMEs), textile, dairy and manufacturing, medicine, steel and chemical industries. The PM didn’t compromise on it since the agreement didn’t seem to accommodate India’s concerns on issues like trade losses and dumping. India should not be party to any such international treaty that’s one-sided & against the interests of our farmers and entrepreneurs. The Congress-led UPA government failed in safeguarding the interests of India. In 2007, it had already begun thinking of engaging in a regional trade agreement (RTA) with China. How this affected India’s trade with China is borne out by the fact that during UPA’s tenure, India’s trade losses with China grew 23 times — from $1.9 billion in 2005 to $44.8 billion in 2014. This hit indigenous industries hard. An example of Congress’ history of compromising with India’s interests is the 2013 Bali Agreement. While participating in the WTO conference, then commerce minister Anand Sharma had weakened India’s stand on its provisions for agriculture subsidy and support prices to farmers. This could have created havoc for farmers, but for the timely intervention of the PM in 2014, who ensured that then commerce minister Nirmala Sitharaman rejected the proposal
Rebuilding the Wall
It is ironic that Congress, which has had a shaky history of dealing with such international treaties, is now desperately trying to take credit for the PM’s decision to stay away from RCEP. In fact, it was Congress’ lack of foresight that had led to India agreeing to become part of this bloc. In its original form, other than 10 Asean countries, only China, Japan and South Korea were to join RCEP. However, thanks to Congress’ lack of concern for the kind of damages it could pose to SMEs and farmers, the UPA government agreed to become part of RCEP. It was evident from the start that this could open the floodgates for Chinese goods to enter India. India also did not share favourable terms of trade with other countries of the bloc. Congress had also compromised India’s interests in the Asean free trade agreement (FTA). Even as countries like Indonesia and Vietnam decided to open only 50% and 69% of their market share for India, New Delhi decided to open 74% of India’s commodities for trade. Decisions like these caused India enormous loss in its trades with RCEP countries — from $7 billion in 2004 to $78 billion in 2014. In the context of current exchange rates, this translates into losses of Rs 5,46,000 crore (2014) from Rs 50,000 crore (2004). Since 2014, in RCEP dialogues, GoI has aggressively protected India’s interests and worked with member countries to agree to favourable conditions, such as opening up the services sector for the first time for India, higher exports from India, etc. Congress was so eager to be a part of RCEP that it had conceded that the import duty as applicable on January 1, 2014, would be taken as the base rate, assuming the agreement would be operational by 2016. This could have caused havoc, as the 2014 base rate would have led to unhindered imports. Also, the import duties on many products have gone up in last few years. The PM argued for 2019 as the base rate. In the RCEP conference, along with commerce minister Piyush Goel, the PM put forward the interests of farmers, SMEs and manufacturing industries, and vigorously asked for amendments vital to India’s interest. The most prominent demands were amendment in tariff differential, changes in base rate for customs duty, changes in the most favoured nation (MFN) rule, asking for exemptions built into ratchet obligations as part of the pact, respecting India’s federal character while determining investments, etc. India was unwavering in its resolve to bring to the fore these pertinent issues. At one point during the dialogue, out of the 70 agenda items, around 50 were of concern to India. GoI has begun to evaluate Asean and the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with South Korea. It is working on getting into trade relations with Japan, the US, EU countries, and other developed nations that shall help in making India a $5 trillion economy. Considering India’s growing stature, RCEP members can’t afford to ignore it for long, and will come around to agree to GoI’s terms. Meanwhile, India has maintained successful economic relations with Asean by the means of FTA. By rejecting RCEP, India has firmly protected its industries from any adverse effects that Chinese interests could have caused. For us, India remains first, and foremost. The writer is home minister, GoI
Source: Economic Times
I was disappointed when India decided to opt out of the RCEP. We had all the time in the world to negotiate and get a good deal for ourselves. I travelled for one such meeting (summit with ASEAN) to Cambodia in the PM’s special plane (the year was 2003). During the flight Vajpayee asked me whether I had seen the speech which had been prepared for him. The PMO used to prepare his speeches based on inputs received from various ministries, specially the ministries of commerce and external affairs. The final version was not shown, even to me, and was a trade secret of the PMO. So, I frankly told Vajpayee that I had not seen the final draft.” “He immediately told his officials to show it to me. ‘It is a ...
Source: Business Standard
The government will push Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (OSH) Code in the Budget session of Parliament for approval, said Labour Minister Santosh Gangwar on Wednesday. The Code was introduced in the Lok Sabha on July 23, 2019. It is expected to enhance the coverage of workers manifold and also merge 13 central labour laws into a single code which would apply to all establishments employing 10 or more workers. It will subsume 13 labour laws relating to safety, health and working conditions. These include the Factories Act, 1948, the Mines Act, 1952, and the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970. "We will definitely bring the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (OSH) Code, 2019, in the Budget Session. Parliamentary standing committee has sought public comments on the Code," the minister told reporter on the sidelines of an event of Employees' State Insurance Corporation (ESIC). The Budget session of Parliament is most likely to be scheduled in last week of January. In labour reforms, the government has already received Parliament approval for Code on Wages. The OSH Code will be the second in line for the nod. The government intends to concise 44 labour laws into four broad codes on wages, OSH, social security and industrial relations. The minister also said the Prime Minister was apprised and briefed about the third code (Code on Social Security) and the government wants all four codes to become a reality as soon as possible. When asked about status of other two codes on social security and industrial relations he said, "There is tripartite process to firm up draft laws on labour issues. We dont want to do anything in haste. The discussions are on. We want to bring those to Parliament at the earliest". The Code on OSH proposes one registration for an establishment instead of multiple registrations. Presently, six labour acts out of 13 provide for separate registration of the establishment. This will create a centralised data base and promote ease of doing business. At present, separate registration is required to be obtained under the six Acts. It also provides for for a free of cost annual health checks-up for employees above prescribed age for prescribed tests and for prescribed establishments. It also provides for a statutory provision to issue appointment letter to every employee with the minimum information prescribed by the appropriate government. The provision of appointment letter will result in formalisation of employment and prevent exploitation of the worker.
Source: Economic Times
Economic slowdown has bottomed out, but India Inc is still facing difficulties in getting credit, Assocham president BK Goenka told ET. He said the recent trends indicate that there would not be a further large dip in the growth but that a lack of availability of credit could hamper recovery. “If you see the numbers in Diwali sales and if you see automobile sales numbers, they have bottomed out... Here on, I think, there should be some kind of a U-turn,” said Goenka, adding that the recovery would not be sharp and that it would take 2-3 quarters for the government efforts to stimulate the economy to have an impact on growth. “The biggest issue industry is facing is liquidity,” said Goenka, adding that while banks were flush with liquidity, small enterprises were still not getting credit. Goenka said the government had made efforts to make credit available to the industry but banks dragged their feet on it. “RBI has reduced rates five times by almost 1.5% where the bankers have reduced lending rates less than 0.5%,” he said, adding that the government needed to lower the rate at which it borrows funds to allow bankers to lower their cost of funds. The Assocham president also highlighted that India needed more development finance institutions to fund long term infrastructure projects as commercial banks did not have the risk appetite to fund such projects. Goenka said the recent announcement of a fund to revive real estate projects would have a positive knock on effect on the rest of the economy. “Once people who have invested their savings get a roof over their head, it will have a huge impact and the cycle of purchasing will start,” said Goenka.
Source: Economic Times
A five-judge Constitution Bench led by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi directed the law ministry to conduct an impact study and submit a report to the apex court. Striking down the rules framed under the amended Finance Act 2017 for appointments to tribunals, the Supreme Court has directed the government to reframe fresh norms for such appointments on the basis of existing statutes and not the rules framed under the Finance Act of 2017, which was passed as a Money Bill. A five-judge Constitution Bench led by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi directed the law ministry to conduct an impact study and submit a report to the apex court. It said that there is a need-based requirement to conduct ‘Judicial Impact Assessment’ of all the tribunals so as to analyse the ramifications of the changes in the framework of tribunals as provided under the Finance Act, 2017. However, it referred the issue challenging the validity of passage of Finance Act 2017 as Money Bill to a larger bench of seven judges. It struck down the Tribunal, Appellate Tribunal and other Authorities (Qualifications, Experience and other Conditions of Service of Members) Rules, 2017, saying it suffers from various infirmities as these Rules formulated by the central government under Section 184 of the Finance Act, 2017 are contrary to the parent enactment. And in the meantime, it asked the government to make appointments as per the existing laws that govern the tribunals. The apex court, however, upheld Section 184 of the Finance Act which had entitled the Central government to frame rules to determine appointment, service conditions, removal and other aspects of tribunals. “Section 184 does not suffer from excessive delegation of legislative functions as there are adequate principles to guide framing of delegated legislation, which would include the binding dictums of this Court,” the judgment stated. The CJI writing the judgment for himself, Justices RV Ramana and Sanjiv Khanna said that the Centre should revisit the provisions of the Finance Act and consult the Law Commission of India or any other expert body and place appropriate proposals before the Parliament for consideration of the need to remove direct appeals to the Supreme Court from orders of tribunals. A decision in this regard should be taken by the government within six months, it said. “The new set of Rules to be formulated by the Central Government shall ensure non-discriminatory and uniform conditions of service, including assured tenure, keeping in mind the fact that the Chairperson and Members appointed after retirement and those who are appointed from the Bar or from other specialised professions/services, constitute two separate and distinct homogeneous classes,” it directed. Justice Deepak Gupta and Justice Chandrachud wrote separate but concurring judgments. The decision has come in a batch of petitions led by Roger Mathew and Revenue Bar Association challenging the Constitutional validity of Finance Act, 2017 and the Tribunal, Appellate Tribunal and other Authorities (Qualifications, Experience and other Conditions of Service of Members) Rules, 2017 (Rules). The petitions had stated that the provisions of Finance Act 2017 affected the powers and structures of various judicial tribunals such as National Green Tribunal, Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, National Company Law Tribunal and National Company Law Appellate Tribunal. The petitioners stated that the provisions of twenty-five different enactments were amended to effect sweeping changes to the requisite qualifications, method of appointment, terms of office, salaries and allowances, and various other terms and conditions of service of the members and presiding officers of different statutory Tribunals. Attorney-general KV Venugopal had stressed on the need to streamline and harmonise the applicable rules, which he said was attempted through the Finance Act, 2017. One of the major grounds of challenge to the Finance Act was on the ground that the same was passed as a Money Bill. It was the petitioners’ case that the passage of the Finance Act in the form of a Money Bill’ was entirely inappropriate and amounted to a fraud on the Constitution. Money Bills are those Bills which exclusively contain provisions for imposition of taxes and appropriation of moneys out of the Consolidated Fund. They can only be introduced in the Lok Sabha. The Rajya Sabha can only suggest amendments to money bills.
Source: Financial Express
But core inflation, which excludes the volatile components of food and fuel, stood at 3.3 per cent in October; this is its lowest in eight years. Consumer prices rose at 4.6 per cent in October, the fastest rate since June last year, reflecting that vegetables and pulses have become more expensive in the country. This is an inch above the median 4 per cent target set by the Reserve Bank of India under its inflation-targeting framework. But the core inflation rate, which excludes the volatile components food and fuel, dropped to its lowest in the past eight years, at 3.3 per cent, in October. Core inflation represents the demand and pricing power in the economy, and a sharp drop in October portends feeble prospects of recovery in the current quarter also. The food inflation rate rose to 7.9 per cent, the highest in 39 months, with vegetables (up 26 per cent) and pulses (up 11.7 per cent) contributing the most to this. Food inflation in urban areas, at 10.7 per cent, is the highest in six years. But in part, this ramp-up is due to a low-base effect, as food prices were stagnant for the most of 2018. Experts said low core inflation would prevail over rising headline inflation as the monetary policy committee (MPC) gears up for its December meeting, staring at another slowing quarter. “While volatile food inflation is an idiosyncratic factor, core inflation reflects weaknesses in the economy. While it is generally sticky (rarely moves fast), it has been hammered down by a weak economy,” D K Joshi, chief economist at CRISIL, told Business Standard. He said growth was slowing fast, and it had opened up further the space for monetary easing. Ananth Narayan, who teaches finance at a premier business school in Mumbai, said a declining core inflation rate showed that pricing power in the economy had diminished. “While this makes growth the chief concern before the MPC, the struggle to ensure efficient transmission in lending rates would assume even more importance in coming months,” he said. Economists also said inflation would stay at above 4 per cent for some more months, owing to the low base effect. “Food price inflation is likely to increase further at least till March next year, mainly due to food price deflation till February 2019 and low inflation in March 2019,” said Devendra Pant, chief economist at India Ratings. Core inflation was flying above 6 per cent in 2018, which had prompted the then MPC led by former governor Urjit Patel to raise policy rates, and change stance to calibrated tightening. This was followed by a gradual fall in core inflation, a rate cut cycle that has spanned 135 basis points since February 2019. “Overall, CPI inflation may remain higher than 4 per cent in the remainder of FY20, complicating policy choices in light of the slowdown in the economic growth momentum,” Aditi Nayar, principal economist at ICRA, said.
Source: Business Standard
Ludhiana : The Bahadurke Textile and Knitwear Association may be worried as the November 15 deadline for starting a new Common Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP) is approaching, but the MC authorities are perturbed over the lackadaisical approach of the association. About 26 owners of dyeing units at Bahadurke Road were served notices for disconnection of sewer lines from the MC’s main sewer. MC Commissioner Kamalpreet Brar told The Tribune, “Today, association members had come to submit their representation. They should have accomplished the task within the stipulated time, especially when they had committed it to the NGT. Their discharge is choking our sewer lines. But now this issue is to be dealt with at the MC General House meeting. Their representation has been moved to the Mayor today itself. Action will be taken accordingly by the House,” said the MC Commissioner. Meanwhile, Rajnish Gupta, one of the directors of the association, said they had gone to meet the MC Commissioner and the Joint Commissioner, who had taken the representation. At the same time, another representation was sent to Local Bodies Minister Brahm Mohindra. “Though none has given any assurance that the deadline will be extended, we are still hopeful that for one last time, they will do the needful as the CETP work is at last stage and its completion will take some time. We have asked them to extend the deadline till December 31, 2019,” said Gupta. It may be mentioned here that a few days back, the MC authorities had served notices to association members to disconnect their connections from the MC’s main sewer lines till November 15 else the MC will cut their sewer lines. The notices were served as the deadline given to the association got over on September 30. The MC authorities said several deadlines were crossed, but so far, the association had not been able to start the CETP. “Had they started everything parallel, they could have easily saved the time, but they did not do so and now want extension of deadline,” rued Commissioner Brar.
Source: Tribune
The Indian rupee depreciated 15 paise in early trade on Thursday tracking weak macroeconomic data, rising crude prices and negative cues from global markets. At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened marginally higher at 72.05 against the US dollar, before turning negative and dropping 15 paise to 72.24 against its previous close. On Wednesday, the local unit crashed 62 paise to hit an over two-month low of 72.09 to the US dollar as poor macro data and lingering worries over US-China trade war weighed on sentiment. Overall market sentiment remains weak on account of weak macro numbers and negative global cues, forex traders said. Retail price based consumer inflation spiked to a 16-month high of 4.62 per cent in October on costlier food items, reducing the headroom for a rate cut by the RBI in its monetary policy due next month. The inflation in the food basket spiked to 7.89 per cent in October 2019 as against 5.11 per cent the preceding month, showed the data released by the Central Statistics Office under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation on Wednesday. On the global front, Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell the US economy is likely to continue to grow, but faces continued risks from the global slowdown and trade disputes, which have already dampened expansion. Also, China's industrial output grew much slower than expected in October, as its trade war with the US weighed its overall economy. Meanwhile, domestic bourses opened a tad higher on Thursday with benchmark indices Sensex trading 41.37 points, or 0.10 per cent, up at 40,157.43; and Nifty rising 6.35 points, or 0.05 per cent, at 11,846.80. Foreign institutional investors purchased shares worth Rs 584.92 crore on Wednesday, according to provisional exchange data. The dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, slipped 0.02 per cent to 98.35. Crude oil benchmark, Brent futures, rose 0.42 per cent to USD 62.63 per barrel. The 10-year government bond yield was at 6.53 per cent in morning trade.
Source: Business World
|
Item |
Price |
Unit |
Fluctuation |
Date |
|
PSF |
963.98 |
USD/Ton |
-0.66% |
11/13/2019 |
|
VSF |
1508.71 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/13/2019 |
|
ASF |
2188.20 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/13/2019 |
|
Polyester POY |
974.67 |
USD/Ton |
0.96% |
11/13/2019 |
|
Nylon FDY |
2231.69 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/13/2019 |
|
40D Spandex |
4106.88 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/13/2019 |
|
Nylon POY |
5390.28 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/13/2019 |
|
Acrylic Top 3D |
1219.23 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/13/2019 |
|
Polyester FDY |
2096.22 |
USD/Ton |
-0.34% |
11/13/2019 |
|
Nylon DTY |
2324.38 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/13/2019 |
|
Viscose Long Filament |
1076.63 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/13/2019 |
|
Polyester DTY |
2466.98 |
USD/Ton |
-0.29% |
11/13/2019 |
|
30S Spun Rayon Yarn |
2090.52 |
USD/Ton |
-0.27% |
11/13/2019 |
|
32S Polyester Yarn |
1597.12 |
USD/Ton |
-0.44% |
11/13/2019 |
|
45S T/C Yarn |
2424.20 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/13/2019 |
|
40S Rayon Yarn |
2395.68 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/13/2019 |
|
T/R Yarn 65/35 32S |
1953.62 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/13/2019 |
|
45S Polyester Yarn |
1782.50 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/13/2019 |
|
T/C Yarn 65/35 32S |
2295.86 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
11/13/2019 |
|
10S Denim Fabric |
1.26 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
11/13/2019 |
|
32S Twill Fabric |
0.69 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
11/13/2019 |
|
40S Combed Poplin |
0.97 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
11/13/2019 |
|
30S Rayon Fabric |
0.56 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
11/13/2019 |
|
45S T/C Fabric |
0.67 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
11/13/2019 |
Source: Global Textiles
Note: The above prices are Chinese Price (1 CNY = 0.14270 USD dtd. 13/11/2019). The prices given above are as quoted from Global Textiles.com. SRTEPC is not responsible for the correctness of the same.
The inconsistent growth rate in the textile industry is the result of lack of implementation of the preceding two textile policies. Political instability, Cyclical fluctuations in the international market and the inauspiciousness of the government to work out an efficient system that benefits the production process has seized growth and held back the capital influx. This has led to a deficit in the balance of payments. Textile industry being a major player in the exports of Pakistan succumbs and numerous businesses discontinue operations as the textile policies of past fail to get a stable foothold. The increasing energy crisis, unfavorable business conditions consequential of adverse government policies, up surging inflation lead to a decline in investor’s confidence and has sent the entire textile value chain in a state of distress. The SWOT analysis indicates that whilst the textile industry contributes to a substantial portion of the country’s economy namely exports, GDP and tax turnover, growth remains stunted due to inferior cotton production, increased cost of doing business and a lack of implementation of governmental policies. This compounding with rigorous foreign competition, Pakistan’s share in the foreign market continues to plummet. With the Textile Industry facing such strong headwinds there are segments such as synthetic fibers and the garments industry that can be tapped to improve the overall profitability of the sector and increase export. The negative effects of the lack of implementation of the previous textile policies can be ameliorated if the Government adopts the following. The declining investment confidence can be lifted by providing sustainable, fair priced, un-hindered energy resources. The Textile Industry is ready to adopt renewable (solar hybrid) energy solutions to deal with sustainability and competitiveness issues. Such energy resources should be researched upon, funded, explored and their installment incentivized mainly at Industrial zones enabling the producer to be self-sufficient to a degree and decrease dependency over a single source of energy. This is ever so vital because 35% of the total conversion cost in the textile Industry is absorbed as energy cost. Quality and availability of raw materials can be improved by subsidising the cotton production cycle and enforcing quality control checks. Institutes working in this respect (eg.PCCC) are mere formalities who are ignorant to the Improvement and development of cotton. This is evident given that 90% of their annual expenditure is administrative. Lack of a quality control system over locally produced raw material means that for good quality cotton the Industry is heavily dependent on import channels. Production of synthetic fibers should be introduced into the textile value chain keeping in mind their popularity and demand in the international market. Pakistan’s footprint in such foreign markets can be further broadened by facilitating the entry of new brands by giving them assurance of a healthy business environment, introduction of investment friendly policies and exploration of new potential markets for our exports such an Africa. The government should introduce positive tax reforms that facilitate entry into the industry. Examples of such are reduced corporate taxes similar, quicker refunds of input sales tax and a revamped minimum tax regime. It is necessary that the sales tax refund system be streamlined and the refund process made more efficient. In addition to this the government should address the issue of DTRE bonds (bonds issued as refunds) not being discounted by the scheduled banks in order to avoid a liquidity crisis and the State Bank of Pakistan needs to address this issue. This is more crucial now than ever since the Government stripped the textile industry off its zero-rated status. The new government had initially announced that energy, both gas and electricity, will be provided to export oriented industries at regionally competitive prices and refund of taxes and duty drawbacks will be paid on time. Although being a welcoming decision on paper, proper implementation is still awaited. Numerous Industrial units categorized as sick have seized production all together because given the current situation of up surging costs the continuation of operations no longer stood viable. The government needs to work out a policy paradigm for upward growth of such sick units. Positive steps should be taken regarding business facilitation of these units so they may have a chance to reconnect to their past glory. Implementation of internal reforms such as relief over loan terms from financial institutions, incentivising new entrants and facilitating the current manufacturers of the Textile sector would yield favorable results. Tariffs on imported textile materials are applied to provide protection to domestic industry which has built inefficiencies in the manufacturing process. The government should curtail down on customs and duties to facilitate the import of modern, state of the art textile machinery and allow a higher percentage of initial depreciation as deduction while calculating income taxes. Rigorous anti-dumping laws should be adopted which would protect the domestic market and provide a level playing field for the local producer. Government funded labour training schemes should be put in practice with special focus upon women employment programs, this would increase the skilled labour turnover .The existing schemes offered require the business to follow a tedious screening process therefore leniency over the terms would be very welcoming . Once implemented these policies would yield a turnover increase of $45 billion, create 3-4 million jobs in the upcoming 5 years and improve the socio-economic profile of Pakistan.
Source: The Nation
The Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Textile Research Institute (DOST-PTRI) and the Great Women Philippines Inc. (GWPI) along with the Iloilo Science and Technology University and the local government of Miagao, Iloilo, recently inaugurated the Regional Yarn Production and Innovation Centre (RYPIC) to enable local weavers in Miagao to source yarn from the town. According to DOST-PTRI director Celia Elumba, there is a demand for textile manufactured in the domestic market, especially those made from local raw materials. Elumba said though the country has a preferential trade agreement with Japan, the lack of materials in producing textiles cannot sustain the partnership. The same is also a challenge for a similar trade agreement with Europe, a news agency report quoted her as saying. The RYPIC in Miagao town has 300 spindles to process blended yarns. There are total 200,000 spindles in the country, she informed. GWPI is a project of the Philippine Commission on Women to empower women in the economic environment, provide support to product design and market.
Source: Fibre2fashion
Next year marks the centenary of the word robot in Karel Capek’s play R.U.R., where the intelligent machine in the workplace is portrayed as a threat to mankind. Their physical hardness and rigidity has become a visual shorthand for their non-human or otherness. As applications for robotics have moved to include the human body as well as the workplace and the environment, there has been a noticeable emphasis on robots that are softer and more flexible with textiles assuming a greater role in how they are now imagined. In his first editorial for Soft Robotics launched in 2013, Editor-in-Chief Barry Trimmer explained the motivation behind the journal: “by building soft materials into the fundamental design of machines, or by building them completely from soft materials, we add a new dimension to design and create an untapped resource for entirely new types of machinery”. This marks an important shift in the technological mindset around what a robot can be and how it can function alongside, even augmenting humans. In space, military, medical and material applications robots are finding new ways to bring benefit made possible by their unique attributes that can include strength, intelligence, flexibility and softness.
Space
Before mankind set foot on the moon, NASA had sent Ranger, Surveyor and Lunar Orbiter robots to gather and transmit information in preparation for human travel to Space. Designed for performance and ruggedness, these look and behave in ways that are most commonly associated with robots for Space research. However, designers of soft-goods at NASA are combining robot technology with apparel in the design of their Robo-Glove. Sensors placed in the fingertips of the glove allow for the fingers to be set rigid to grip tools or equipment, then pressed again to release. This provides muscle support without compromising dexterity through the thick protective layers of the glove. Molly Harwood, one of the NASA designers describes it as “feeling like power steering for your hands”. Sensors and actuators can be incorporated as wearable technology, which, of course, this robo-glove is. But in bringing it to the level of robotics the expectation and approach are shifted towards a higher level of physical support beyond what a textile-first design might deliver.
Military
Much of the emphasis in US military close to or on-body robotics has been focused on exoskeletons with developments such as the Human Universal Load Carrier (HULC) relieving muscle strain on the wearer traversing rough terrain in strenuous and stressful conditions. However, treatment of injured soldiers is also an area of research. A multidisciplinary team from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine is developing TRAuma Care in a Rucksack (TRACIR). Robotics are brought together with Artificial Intelligence (AI) to develop a hard and soft robotic suit with embedded sensors capable of assessing the injuries of the patient as they are placed within it. AI algorithms help to direct critical care and apply stabilising treatments such as intravenous fluids and some medication. Ron Poopatich MD, Director of Pitt’s Centre for Military Medicine Research and Principal Investigator (PI) on the US$ 3.1 million contract sees it as being particularly beneficial in remote combat zones where soldiers cannot be evacuated easily: “By fusing data captured from multiple sensors and applying machine learning, we are developing more predictive cardio-pulmonary resuscitation opportunities, which hopefully will conserve an injured soldier’s strength.”
Medical
The approach to soft robot research at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering exemplifies the breadth of approaches to the field. In one project a collaboration with Harvard SEAS has led to the development of a multi-joint soft exosuit. The use of a machine-learning algorithm allows them to efficiently personalise the control strategies for individual soft wearable exosuits. In another development origami has inspired a design for soft yet strong artificial muscles capable of lifting up to on thousand times its own weight. A Pop-Up Mems manufacturing technology is allowing the creation of a flexible hybrid sensor small enough to be used with a surgical endoscope. Four layers of laser-machined stainless steel and sandwiched with a flexible polymer layer and laminated to allow for self-assembly with copper providing the electrical contacts. The manufacturing process sees the material agitated in an ultrasonic bath so that the 2D material “pops up” into a 3D sensor via an integrated spring with a footprint of just 2.7mm. This mixing of hard and soft layers in not unlike the hard abalone shell, something that Biomimicry-inspired textile technologists have long looked to emulate.
Robot skin
A couple of decades ago artificial skin was focused on replicating human skin in appearance. Usually made of a polyurethane, it often acted as an inert aesthetic covering for robotics or prosthetics. Now, just as e-textiles look for greater integration between electronics and textiles, roboticists are seeking ways for robot and skin to become as one. Researchers at the Institute of Ion Beam Physics and Materials Research in Dresden are working on an electronic skin that is bifunctional, capable of simultaneous tactile and touchless stimulation using a magnetic microelectromechanical (m-MEMS) system. The ability to distinguish between different types of stimuli has the potential to offer new capabilities in areas such as Augmented Reality (AR) and Medicine. In a paper published in Nature Machine Intelligence, researchers at the University of Southern California point to the potential for new developments in soft robotics and multi-sensory abstraction to lead to a new field of machine intelligence where they would exhibit equivalence to feelings and offer a way to investigate consciousness, intelligence and the process of feeling. As textiles and apparel look to encourage non-textiles industries to consider the advanced and smart capabilities of textiles, these developments emerging from robotics are a timely reminder that an openness to new ideas and product development works both ways and the textiles industry too has much to learn from other fields.
Source: Innovation in Textiles
The Thai ministry of commerce is preparing to wrap up consultations with relevant agencies and organisations across the country on a proposal to resume free trade talks with the European Union (EU). A summary of opinions would be submitted to a committee on international economic policy chaired by deputy prime minister Somkid Jatusripitak. Many parties support the resumption of trade talks, but there are concerns over the possible influx into Thailand of products like wine and liquor on a zero-per-cent tariff if a trade pact is signed, said Auramon Supthaweethum, director-general of the department of trade negotiations. She said Thailand would meanwhile hold free trade talks with Turkey next month, according to a report in a Thai newspaper. The European Free Trade Association (EFTA), which represents Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, has yet to be consulted as to whether it wishes to resume talks with Thailand. Those negotiations have been stalled for more than 13 years since the initial two rounds held in 2005 and 2006.
Source: Fibre2Fashion
An institutional and commercial mission of Italian textile machinery manufacturers took place in Kenya and Tanzania last week. The initiative’s organisers Italian Trade Agency and ACIMIT, the Association of Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers, wanted to strengthen contacts between the Italian textile machinery industry and the textiles sector in these two African Countries. The world’s textiles and garment sector is closely watching manufacturing countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, an area that is emerging as a manufacturing hub for the industry, firstly for obvious reasons relating to production costs, but also for the incentives offered by local governments. Consequently, investments in machinery are also increasing and Italian manufacturers do not want to be caught unprepared in this growth scenario. “Following several promotional initiatives focusing on Ethiopia over the past few years, together with the Italian Trade Agency, we’ve decided to explore the business opportunities in Kenya and Tanzania, two Countries whose respective Governments are currently promoting the development of their textile and garment industry,” explained Alessandro Zucchi, ACIMIT President.
Vision 2030
Kenya, in particular, is an especially interesting market for textile machinery manufacturers, the association reports. The development programme known as Vision 2030 put forward by the local authorities places the textiles sector among the primary beneficiaries of the incentives made available by the government, in addition to providing Kenyan manufacturers with access to the US market, thanks to AGOA (the African Growth and Opportunity Act), which has boosted the Country's exports. “Both Kenya and Tanzania need to develop their respective textile sectors, through a massive modernization process of existing technology,” continued Mr Zucchi. “This mission offered us with an opportunity to kick start a fruitful and cooperative partnership with major textile manufacturers in both Countries, while preventing China from monopolizing the textile machinery market in this area of Africa.”
Outcome of the mission
During the mission, Italy’s representatives met up with textiles companies and authorities, as well as the industry’s main institutional representatives in the two Countries. The nine Italian machinery manufacturers associated with ACIMIT that took part in the initiative included Bianco, Brazzoli, Cibitex, Danitech, Itema, Ferraro, Marzoli, Mesdan and Tmt Cimi. The outcome of the initiative was positive: Italian textile technologies were highly appreciated locally, both in Kenya and in Tanzania, considering them an opportunity for upgrading the production plants in order to achieve a greater competitiveness in the world scenario. About 50 operators of the two countries attended the initiative. ACIMIT will also be on hand at ITME Africa, the industry’s top trade show in Sub-Saharan Africa, to be held in Addis Ababa from 14-16 February 2020.
Source: Innovation in Textiles
