Textile Raw Material Price 2015-06-14
|
Item |
Price |
Unit |
Fluctuation |
|
PSF |
1258.87 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
|
VSF |
2030.48 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
|
ASF |
2489.21 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
|
Polyester POY |
1233.61 |
USD/Ton |
0.26% |
|
Nylon FDY |
3096.24 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
|
40D Spandex |
6388.03 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
|
Nylon DTY |
2683.95 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
|
Viscose Long Filament |
1442.20 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
|
Polyester DTY |
3340.68 |
USD/Ton |
-0.49% |
|
Nylon POY |
5964.34 |
USD/Ton |
0.14% |
|
Acrylic Top 3D |
1491.08 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
|
Polyester FDY |
2900.69 |
USD/Ton |
-0.56% |
|
30S Spun Rayon Yarn |
2721.43 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
|
32S Polyester Yarn |
1988.11 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
|
45S T/C Yarn |
2982.17 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
|
45S Polyester Yarn |
2183.66 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
|
T/C Yarn 65/35 32S |
2493.29 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
|
40S Rayon Yarn |
2884.39 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
|
T/R Yarn 65/35 32S |
2737.73 |
USD/Ton |
0% |
|
10S Denim Fabric |
1.14 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
|
32S Twill Fabric |
0.96 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
|
40S Combed Poplin |
1.35 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
|
30S Rayon Fabric |
0.77 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
|
45S T/C Fabric |
0.78 |
USD/Meter |
0% |
Source: Global Textiles
Note: The above prices are Chinese Price (1 CNY = 0.16296 USD dtd. 14/06/2015)
The prices given above are as quoted from Global Textiles.com. SRTEPC is not responsible for the correctness of the same.
The Karnataka state government has steps to develop the textile sector is contemplating the launch of “Vastra bhagya” to hand out handloom sarees for women and dhotis for men belonging to BPL families on the occasion of two or three major festivals in the next fiscal, according to minister for textiles Babu Rao Chinchansur. The minister said that there were 1.25 lakh working power looms, 75,000 working hand loom and around 10,000 manual looms at 1,000 co-operative societies. These units could produce sufficient quantity of hand loom sarees and dhotis for one crore plus BPL families. It is estimated to cost about Rs100 crore annually; a similar scheme in Tamil Nadu is being studied before taking a final decision. Highlighting the steps taken to develop the textiles sector, he said that 1,000 acres had been reserved for the proposed Textile Park in Yadgir. It is expected to provide employment for about 10,000 persons in this backward region. A modern Textile Training Institute will also be set up there. Similar textile parks will be set up at Sira in Tumakuru district and Kudathini in Ballari district, Chinchanasur said.The state government has waived loan and interest of Rs17.58 crore availed by 9,494 weavers from banks and other financial institutions for their working needs in 2013-14.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
The Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI) on Friday sought additional allocation of around Rs.3,000 crore under the Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (TUFS) stating unhealthy conditions faced by spinning sector. The additional allocation will help clear the subsidy amount pending for earlier commitments from December 2014 to March 2015 under the TUFS scheme and also for new investments this year. Prem Malik, Chairman of Confederation of Indian Textile Industry, said that the Government should provide Rs.3,000 crore additional allocation for the scheme for 2015-16. Textiles are a capital intensive industry and the two percent to five per cent subsidy on interest available through the scheme helps the industry improve its competitiveness. This was required urgently since committed liability was delayed and there were no further funds for new investment in the sector. Such a step would help textile industry to participate in Make in India programme, Malik said.The scheme is valid till 2017 and the Government should provide adequate allocations for it. The industry is facing several challenges and during the last three years, investments were to the tune of Rs.27,000 crore to Rs.30,000 crore. Investments are expected to be minimal if the scheme is not there as the capital cost is high for the textile and clothing sector and they need an element of rebate on interest. Sources in the industry added that nearly 35 percent of textile and clothing production in the country is exported. The scheme helps the industry improve its efficiency and competitiveness by upgrading the technology.Similarly, CITI also wanted the Cotton Corporation of India to look into the stocks and provide quality cotton to the mill sector for consumption at prices equal to the actual import prices.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
India’s merchandise trade witnessed yet another year of undistinguished performance, with exports registering a negative growth and the overall trade deficit pushing upwards after it experienced a sharp fall during in FY14. Thus, despite the overall favourable performance of the economy, as suggested by the GDP figures, the performance of merchandise trade has remained unsatisfactory. Although the dip in exports and the rise in trade was nominal, and may well be brushed away, the government needs to take a close look at the underlying problems to ensure that these negative sentiments are quickly reversed. The increase in the deficit on merchandise trade account does not augur well since the previous financial year saw two favourable circumstances that led to a compression of India’s import bill. The first was the rare occurrence of a steep decline in crude oil prices to levels that had not been anticipated, even after the sluggish demand for oil in a stuttering global economy was factored in. The second was the continuance of the policy of restricting gold imports that the BJP government had persisted with well into the second half of FY15, before it relaxed these controls. These factors combined to restrict imports, whose impact was felt especially in the second half of FY15.
However, the real concern is the negative growth in exports. In two of the past three financial years, India’s exports have contracted. An obvious explanation for the export slump in FY15 would be the decline in petroleum prices, as a result of which nearly a fifth of the total export bill was adversely affected. But a close perusal of the available numbers for the exports tells us that the downward pressure on exports was caused not by the petroleum sector alone. Textiles and clothing, that continue to be one of the largest components of exports, remained virtually flat after registering a double-digit export growth in FY14, while exports of the broad chemicals group were perceptibly slower in the previous fiscal. Amid this overall decline, a few manufacturing segments have registered decent growth rates. Two sectors in this category are non-electrical machinery and automobiles. The former category includes industries that have traditionally been India’s areas of strength in manufacturing. In recent years, this group of industries has performed consistently, thus maintaining its share in exports. Over the past decade, the automobile industry has been able to use the strength that it has acquired in the domestic economy to penetrate in international markets. This has been possible through consistent increase its exports, which, in the previous fiscal, were in double-digits.
The direction of exports tells two sharply contrasting stories. The positive development is that India’s exports to the two largest destinations, the US and the UAE, increased in excess of 8%. Interestingly, these were the only two among its major trade partners that India had registered trade surpluses. With the US, India’s trade surplus had increased by nearly a fourth in FY15 as compared to the preceding year. Over the past decade, India has taken several steps to enhance its economic relations with its eastern neighbours. A free trade agreement (FTA) has been in operation with the ASEAN members since 2010, which was followed by comprehensive economic partnership agreements (CEPAs) with Japan and Korea, but these agreements have not yielded the desired results since India has not been able to enhance its presence in these markets. While India’s exports to Japan and the ASEAN countries, as a share of its total exports, have declined since the agreements became operational, the share of its exports to Korea has remained virtually stagnant.
India’s exports to the European Union are the largest among the major regions, but export trends to this region have not been very favourable in the recent past. This trend has persisted in FY15, with India’s exports having declined by well over 4%. The biggest source of concern is the steadily deteriorating balance on the merchandise trade account with China, India’s largest trade partner. In FY15, the trade imbalance had increased by over a third. This large trade deficit is essentially a reflection of India’s inability to penetrate the Chinese markets, a problem that seems to have got aggravated over the past three years. In FY12, India’s exports to China were valued at $18 billion, but in FY15, the value of exports had dropped to below $12 billion. The magnitude of the trade imbalance can be viewed in yet another manner. In FY12, India’s exports to China were roughly half of the trade deficit; in FY15, they were barely a fourth. These trends in the merchandise trade point to the necessity for India to develop a coherent strategy to participate in the economic integration agreements. Immediately after assuming power, the present government had sent out signals that it would review India’s FTAs, in light of the poor showing by the country. For such a review to be really useful for providing the guidance on how Indian enterprises should improve their presence in the markets of partner countries, the government must engage meaningfully with all the relevant stakeholders. Further, the export strategy needs to be coupled with the initiatives to strengthen the domestic production structures, in particular, with the Make-in-India initiative. In other words, it is important to recognise that the export sector cannot be expected to respond to the global challenges unless efforts are made to make the domestic manufacturing base globally efficient.
It must be emphasised that steps to improve the export sector should be taken urgently given the series of significant FTA negotiations that India is currently engaged in. These include negotiations for formalising the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), the mega-regional trade agreement that India is participating with 15 major countries in East Asia. Besides, India is negotiating similar comprehensive economic partnership agreements with the European Union, Australia and Canada. These agreements would create market access opportunities for the Indian enterprises, which they must be able to exploit.
SOURCE: The Financial Express
National Small Industries Corporation Ltd (NSIC) has said it is looking at areas of mutual cooperation between Indian and Singaporean enterprises to expand India's industrial presence in South East Asia. "We would like to see if there are areas of mutual cooperation whereby Indian and Singaporean enterprises can have relationships. We would like to build that type of relationships," NSIC chairman and managing director Ravindra Nath said. As facilitator, NSIC would want to see collaborations between Singapore and Indian enterprises, involving training from either side, sharing of knowledge, expertise and machinery as per requirements of the two parties. He said NSIC has already initiated similar discussions with enterprises in Vietnam and Malaysia.
NSIC, a Government of India Enterprise under the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), has been working to fulfill its mission of promoting, aiding and fostering the growth of small industries and industry related micro, small and medium enterprises in the country. "We are gradually expanding into South East Asia," Nath told PTI at the 'Make In India: Global Business Summit 2015', held yesterday. For NSIC, it is a role of facilitator in matching MSMEs with those in South East Asia. The NSIC is adopting its "successful model" applied in building relationships between Indian and African enterprises, which include exports of India-made machineries, expertise, technologies and training for setting new enterprises, mostly in developing economies. He cited an example of India-Botswana SME venture which agrees to supply India-made HIV medicine for the first three years with the drug production to commence in the African country from the fourth year after completion of training in the manufacturing processes.
At home, the 1955-founded mini-Ratna NSIC is working with public sector companies to have Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) participate in the public procurement scheme, which became mandatory from 1 April 2015. "We are in discussions with the public sector companies and government departments that their procurement of up to 20 per cent should be made through local MSEs," he said, pointing out that the medium sized enterprises are not covered under the scheme. This would mutually benefit all with MSEs participating in the 20 per cent allocated public procurement and the public sector achieving its target, he said. The NSIC is also working on its "Rapid Incubation" scheme, providing structured training to people in setting up enterprises in India. It is also training Indian youths at its campus based on industry-specific requirements and make available young skilled manpower. As many as 55 companies have recruited trained and skilled youths from the Delhi centre. "It is a win-win situation, the skilled manpower gets the job and the industry gets the trained manpower," said Nath who made MSME presentation at the summit.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
Singapore has emerged as one of the top three locations attracting India's outbound investments during June, 2013 - May, 2014 period. Singapore has ranked third, accounting for 13.3 per cent of India's outbound investments during June 2013-May 2014 period, PWC Singapore Senior Partner Abhijit Ghosh said, quoting RBI data, in a presentation at Bengal Chamber. Netherlands ranked first in the chart with 26.1 per cent, followed by Mauritius with 15.9 per cent of outbound investments. Singapore ranked third during the period. Ghosh said there has been growing interest among Indian companies for Singapore for its various advantages, including lower tax regime. He said Singapore's corporate tax is at 17 per cent, one of the least in the world and with certain benefits, the effective rate works out to be as low as 4.5-5 per cent.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
Australia and India have a "very large" bilateral agenda and ties have grown tremendously in the past few months, raising hopes that dialogues in defence and security sector would be further intensified. "The relationship is really on the up and we have to invest a lot of time in doing work here," the new Indian High Commissioner to Australia Navdeep Suri said. "After the Prime Minister's (Narendra Modi) visit, our relationship has really grown... It is a happy situation that there is a very large bilateral agenda," Suri added. The new envoy was being felicitated here by Indian community at a function organised by Federation of Indian Associations of Victoria (FIAV). Suri informed the group that the two countries were working on free trade agreement which has progressed after the two rounds of discussions which have been held in the past. "The free trade agreement has made progress with the two sides agreeing on 1,800 line items... And it is just a small part of Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement," Suri said. The two sides were holding regular dialogues in defence and security sector which would intensify in coming months, Suri indicated. He pointed out the visit of two Indian Navy Ships (INS) Satpura and Kamorta to Perth this month.
The arrival of the two Indian Navy Ships coincided with a visit by Indian Navy's Eastern Naval Commander Vice Admiral Satish Soni, who was in Perth to hold discussions ahead of the Royal Australian Navy's first bilateral maritime exercise with India. The exercise will be held in September in the Eastern Fleet exercise areas off the east coast of India. "This week, we have talks between our two navies and we are going to be preparing for our first-ever bilateral maritime exercise that will take place in Bay of Bengal in September," Suri informed. The two sides were also expected to hold an annual discussion over defence policy later this month that will assist in setting up road map on defence collaboration. Apart from that, Suri said that Indian senior officials also attended in the Sydney's regional summit on counter terrorism and a large team from India was expected to attend the working group on resource and minerals in Brisbane. Suri was recently appointed as the High Commissioner to Australia earlier this year in February.
SOURCE: The Business Standard
Former Union minister and senior Congress leader Anand Sharma on Sunday said the economy of the country was “struggling” and sought a white paper on overdraft and the financial position of the Union government. “The NDA (National Democratic Alliance) government’s claims that the economy is recovering are hollow and misplaced, with parameters of growth like manufacturing, service sector, agriculture and exports showing a decline,” Sharma said. Sharma also dubbed the one-year rule of the Modi government a “year of betrayal, broken promises and boastful claims” accusing him of taking credit for schemes implemented by the previous United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government. “The Modi government is taking credit for JAM (Jan Dhan, Aadhaar and mobile numbers) trinity but all these schemes were conceived and implemented by the UPA government,” he said, adding that at that time the then Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which was in opposition, had criticised these policies and even declared to scrap the Adhaar scheme. Sharma said that petroleum prices which were hovering around 125 dollars per barrel have crashed to 55-66 dollars per barrel but the NDA government has not passed on the benefit to the consumers but earned Rs 62,000 crores and revised the excise duty thrice. The price of petrol must be reduced by Rs 25 per litre, he demanded.
Referring to the Gujarat model of development, he said the CAG reports have exposed the irregularities committed by the state government and added that,"If CAG reports in Delhi can create a turmoil the CAG reports on Gujarat cannot go unnoticed and we will ask all the questions at the right time. Ridiculing the claims of the government that there has been no case of corruption or scam during the NDA government, Sharma said that there is difference between corruption and allegation of corruption and the UPA government had taken legal actions like bringing the RTI Act, Lokpal Bill and whistle blower Act but the BJP government has not appointed the Lokpal and several key pots are lying vacant.
SOURCE: The Business Standard
The international crude oil price of Indian Basket as computed/published today by Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC) under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas was US$ 62.83 per barrel (bbl) on 12.06.2015. This was lower than the price of US$ 63.89 per bbl on previous publishing day of 11.06.2015.
In rupee terms, the price of Indian Basket decreased to Rs 4023.00 per bbl on 12.06.2015 as compared to Rs 4081.93 per bbl on 11.06.2015. Rupee closed weaker at Rs 64.03 per US$ on 12.06.2015 as against Rs 63.89 per US$ on 11.06.2015. The table below gives details in this regard:
|
Particulars |
Unit |
Price on June 12, 2015 (Previous trading day i.e. 11.06.2015) |
Pricing Fortnight for 01.06.2015 (May 14 to May 27, 2015) |
|
Crude Oil (Indian Basket) |
($/bbl) |
62.83 (63.89) |
63.49 |
|
(Rs/bbl |
4023.00 (4081.93) |
4045.58 |
|
|
Exchange Rate |
(Rs/$) |
64.03 (63.89) |
63.72 |
SOURCE: PIB
The garment sector is set to miss its export target this fiscal year after the three-month political turmoil hampered shipments. Between July last year and May this year, garment exports raked in $22.92 billion, which is up 5.51 percent year-on-year but below the periodic target of $24.26 billion, according to data from the Export Promotion Bureau. Now, to meet the yearly target of $26.9 billion, some $3.98 billion has to be earned this month, the closing month of fiscal 2014-15. Atiqul Islam, president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, placed the blame on the political crisis.
The garment exporters could hardly send their shipments for three months from January to March, he said.The strong performance by some competing countries such as India, Vietnam and Pakistan is another major reason for the fall, he added.The average export growth of the three countries is nearly 10 percent.Islam also identified some short-term challenges, including lower productivity by workers, higher cost of production and a steep fall of two major currencies -- the dollar and the euro -- against the taka.“It's time to find out the root cause of our problems for the sustainability of the garment business and to achieve our $50 billion target by the end of 2021.” The long-term challenge for the garment sector is the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a trade agreement between Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam and the US.The agreement is expected to take effect soon.If the TPP is signed, Vietnam will enjoy duty benefits to the US and other prominent markets, another threat for the Bangladeshi garment items, he said.Ahsan H Mansur, executive director of Policy Research Institute, said a lack of new investment for expansion purposes set the sector back.
SOURCE: The Global Textiles
The Russian government is considering providing additional state support to its domestic producers of technical textiles and nonwovens. Russian Minister of Industry and Trade plans to provide funds which will help producers to complete currently implemented projects and to launch new ones. According to an official representative of the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade, part of the funds will be also invested in the technical modernization of the national industry of technical textiles and nonwovens, as the share of outdated equipment in it remains very high. According to Alexander Alabichev, deputy head of the Tambov regional government, the planned support will be provided in the form of subsidies from the federal budget that will be mostly allocated for the coverage of interest rates on loans, provided by banks. The amount of state support is not disclosed. There is a possibility that the support may be provided to some other Russian leading producers of technical textiles and nonwovens, such as Kotovsky Plant of Non-Woven Materials, one of Russia’s largest producers of nonwovens and some others.
In addition to producers, part of the funds will be invested in the implementation of some infrastructure projects, and in particular in the establishment of so called Technopark of textiles and technical textiles industry, which is a new large research and production center that will specialize in the design and manufacture of new products in the field of textiles and technical textiles. The new industrial park will comprise of a business centre, a business park, a business incubator, a centre of technical competence, an information centre, a laboratory centre and other infrastructure. It will be located in the city of Pikalevo in the St. Petersburg region and is expected to be commissioned in 2017. According to an official spokesman of Dmitry Medvedev, the current economic crisis in Russia, and the devaluation of the national currency – the ruble, caused by Western sanctions, has not resulted in a same decline, which is currently observed in the national textiles industry. There is also a possibility that part of the allocated funds will be invested in the implementation of one of the most ambitious projects in the Russia’s technical textiles industry in recent years, which involves building a large plant for the production of fibre for the national technical textiles and nonwovens industry in the Ivanovo region.
According to Vasily Gushchin, General Director of CTC Ivregionsintez, the company, which implements the project, the volume of capital expenditures, associated with the building for the last 10-12 months has increased by 60%, compared to initially planned figures and reached 17.7 billion rubles (US$500 million). This became mainly due to the current economic crisis in Russia and devaluation of the national currency, caused by Western sanctions. However, according to some representatives of the Ivanovo government, despite the current financial difficulties, the project should be implemented in time, due to its importance for the national industry of technical textiles. In this regard, there is a possibility that the Ivanovo plant will be included in the list of projects that will receive additional support from the state. It is planned that the range of the new plant will include a fibre for nonwovens, spinnable fiber (for mixtures with wool or cotton), as well as special fiber (hollow, siliconized). Also, part of the plans is the establishment of production of chemical swan's down. Building of the plant will commence in the Q3 of the current year.
According to Gushchin, since 2000 the demand for polyester fibres in Russia has significantly increased and continues to grow today. Currently the annual growth of consumption is varied in the range of 7000 - 8000 tons. Meanwhile, demand for vapour and waterproofing materials has also doubled since then. To date, implementation of some of the projects has been completed. For example, “Composite” holding company, one of Russia’s leading companies in the field of composites’ production, has recently opened a plant for the production of carbon fibre. The new plant is known as ‘Alabuga-fibre’ and is located in a special economic zone Alabuga in Tatarstan. The plant has the capacity to produce up to 1700 tonnes of carbon fibre per year, with the possibility of increasing to 2000 tonnes. This volume will fully meet the need of the Russian market in carbon fibre, which is currently estimated at 500 tonnes. According to results of the recent meeting in the Russian government dedicated to the problems of the national technical textile industry (headed by Russia’s Prime-Minister Dmitry Medvedev), the current condition of the Russia’s technical textiles industry remains relatively good.
SOURCE: Yarns&Fibers
Nepal will sign the Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal (BBIN) Motor Vehicles Agreement in Thimphu on Monday to facilitate transportation of both people and goods among the four SAARC member countries. Minister for Physical Infrastructure and Transport Management Bimalendra Nidhi is leaving for the Bhutanese capital tomorrow to sign the agreement on behalf of the Nepal government. "With endorsement from the cabinet, I am visiting Thimphu to sign the motor vehicles agreement, which is part of the SAARC Motor Vehicles Agreement," Nidhi told. "Once the BBIN is signed, it would pave way for signing the SAARC Motor Vehicle Agreement," he pointed out.
The BBIN agreement is expected to help revive the stalled South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation motor vehicles agreement, which was approved during the SAARC Summit here in November, 2014. "This is a sub-regional motor vehicle agreement which is not parallel to the SAARC motor vehicle agreement," he said. The BBIN will facilitate transportation of both people and goods among the four SAARC member countries. The signing of the BBIN would promote safe, economical, efficient and environmentally sound road transport in the region and would further help each country in creating an institutional mechanism for regional integration. Nidhi said Nepal is still negotiating for the SAARC motor vehicles agreement as early as possible but a meeting could not be convened due to the April 25 quake.
SOURCE: The Economic Times
The Obama administration is expected to announce an agreement with Cuba in early July to reopen embassies and restore diplomatic relations severed more than five decades ago, US sources familiar with the matter said on Friday. The two sides hope to conclude the deal by the first week of next month, clearing the way for Secretary of State John Kerry to visit Havana soon afterwards for a flag-raising ceremony to upgrade the US Interests Section to a full-scale embassy, the sources said. Since a breakthrough between the two former Cold War rivals announced in December, negotiators have settled all but a few differences and were confident they would soon be resolved, several sources told Reuters. They said the exact timetable for the formal embassy opening was unclear because of Kerry's recovery from a broken leg suffered in a May 31 biking accident in France, as well as the looming June 30 deadline for a final nuclear deal with Iran, which would dominate Kerry's schedule over the next weeks.
Restoration of relations would be the latest phase in a normalisation process, which is expected to move slowly because of lingering problems over issues such as Cuba's human rights record. A US embargo will remain in place, and only Congress can lift it. The sources said the administration hoped to formally notify Congress within the next two weeks of its intention to reopen the Havana embassy. The State Department is required by law to give Congress at least 15 days' notice of such an action. Cuba's Communist government is likely to act in sync with the United States on reopening of the embassies, issuing its own announcement on restoring ties, one source said. But it was unclear how fast the two sides would act in naming ambassadors. As part of its preparations to turn its interests section in Washington into a full-fledged embassy, Cuba erected a large flagpole on the front lawn of the building on Wednesday. The flag itself will await the formal announcement of relations.
Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro pledged full restoration of ties on December 17. The two leaders met in Panama in mid-April. Cuba was formally removed from the US list of state sponsors of terrorism late last month, a critical step toward rapprochement 54 years after Washington cut off relations at the height of the Cold War and imposed an economic embargo. US and Cuban negotiators have resolved all but a few minor differences since the last round of high-level talks in May in Washington, the sources said. The main obstacles had been US demands for relative freedom of movement for their diplomats on the island, comparable to that in Russia and Vietnam, while the Cubans had objected to US training courses in journalism and information technology given at the US interests section in Havana. Negotiators are now settling issues such as how many shipping containers will be allowed into Havana for renovating the US mission there. US officials say there is little, if any, chance that hardline anti-Castro lawmakers in Congress would be able to block the restoration of ties.
SOURCE: The Business Standard
He made it personal. He appealed to their loyalty. He asked them to give him what every modern president has had. He argued the facts, disputed the politics, quarrelled over the history and at times lashed out at those who still refused to stand with him. Yet in the end, after years of frustration with Republicans blocking his ideas in Congress, President Obama found the most sweeping legislative initiative left on his agenda thwarted not by the opposition but by his own party. If not for his fellow Democrats, Obama would have a landmark trade bill heading to his desk for signature. The sting of defeat may be temporary. The White House adamantly insisted that it made important progress by passing part of the trade package and still has a chance to turn around the vote on the other part. If that proves true, Obama may yet secure the negotiating authority he needs to seal a legacy-building 12-nation Pacific trade agreement and the day's setback may ultimately be overshadowed.
But for the moment, at least, the defeat laid bare a fundamental schism within the party over economics and, according to some analysts and officials, exposed a stark divide between Democratic lawmakers and a Democratic president late in his tenure. Once eager to support Obama, Democrats now are less willing to buck their labour-dominated base or their own convictions to advance their president's programme. "It's a big hit," said Patrick Griffin, who as President Bill Clinton's legislative director navigated the politics of trade in the 1990s. He said it also speaks to years of frustration among Democrats who feel that when it comes to Obama, "you call me only when you want something."
Others said the defeat had more to do with policy and politics. After decades of watching presidents secure trade agreements from South Korea to Mexico, even in the face of opposition from their base, Democrats have broadly come to the conclusion that such agreements exacerbate income inequality. "Enough is enough," Representative Debbie Dingell, Democrat of Michigan, said during the debate. Phil Schiliro, who managed congressional relations for Obama in his first term, said that Democrats believe the people they represent have suffered from past trade pacts. "I don't think it's a lack of loyalty to the president; I don't think it's a lack of wanting to be with the president," he said. "If your friends genuinely have a different view, that's the hardest thing to square." The fracture is reminiscent of President George W Bush's troubles with his own party at the same point in his administration. Like Obama, Bush aligned himself with the opposition party that controlled Congress only to find himself at odds with fellow Republicans who rejected the idea of a pathway to legal status for millions of immigrants who entered the country illegally.But aides to Obama argued the outcome will be different. In this case, the House passed the trade promotion authority with the support of 28 Democrats, but rejected decisively a program of job assistance for those displaced by trade. Even though they normally support such trade assistance, Democrats voted against it in hopes of torpedoing the overall trade package.
The White House and Republican leaders hope to reverse the vote on trade assistance, although aides to Obama acknowledged the path was not clear. They can try to convince Democrats that they do not want trade assistance to expire at the expense of their constituents or they can dangle incentives to win more Republican votes, or some combination. If they succeed, no further vote will be needed to approve negotiating authority since that part passed. Obama's struggle reflected his longstanding distance from Capitol Hill, irritating members of both parties. He devoted more time in lobbying lawmakers on this issue than any since House Republicans took control after the 2010 election, but even then he delegated most of the arm-twisting to his unpopular trade representative, Michael Froman. As they seek to regroup this weekend, the president and his fellow Democrats will now experience the same thing Republicans have for the last few years - a narrative of their party divided and in disarray.
SOURCE: The Business Standard
