Export bodies seek govt attention to arrest falling exports

Deepak Kumar  | The Dollar Business

Expressing concerns over continuous fall in overseas shipments, export bodies have called for immediate intervention from the government to draw a roadmap to boost the international trade. On Monday, the Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) is likely to hold a meeting with exporters and discuss measures to revive the sector. “We have a meeting with the DGFT on Monday next week. We have been requesting the government for over two-three months to set up a meeting with all the council chairmen, who will discuss about the major hindrances before the industry,” S C Ralhan, President of the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO), told the Dollar Business. Ralhan said the government must look into some of the most basic problems faced by the industry. “The exports containers should leave the country within a day. Other issues like fund of claims, VAT should be refunded immediately,” he pointed out. India’s exports have contracted in ninth straight month in August this year, with 23 out of 30 key product segments witnessing a decline. Exports of petroleum products recorded the maximum fall. Its outward shipment decreased by 47.8% to over $2.7 billion in August 2015 as against $5.3 billion during the same month of the last year. “If the current trend continues, our exports will not touch $220 billion by 2020,” Ralhan said. Tilak Raj Manaktala, President of Delhi Exporters Association, also urged the government to take a proactive approach. “We have been anticipating some concrete steps for over six months. There have been discussions before. The finance ministry has not taken any proactive approach. The overall perception remains that the exports will get an automatic boost as rupee value has fallen,” Manaktala told the Dollar Business. Other key products that witnessed a negative growth include cereals (43.94%), iron ore (34.28%), engineering goods (29.09%), marine products (20.83%), rice (26.32%) and oil meals (19.58%). India's overall exports fell by 20.66% to $21.26 billion last month and the trade deficit was recorded $12.47 billion. Among the remaining seven products segments, only jute and handicraft exports witnessed an upsurge, growing by 46.97% to $45.4 million and 44.55% to over $148 billion in August 2015 as against $30.9 million and $102.6 Million respectively during the same period last year. “Chinese slowdown has affected our exports. We are facing stiff competition from Bangladesh and Vietnam. The US and the European Union constitute for 40% of India’s merchandise exports. Things are getting better in these markets, and we are expecting better exports this month as compared to August 2014,” Manaktala said.  

September 26, 2015 | 3:57pm IST.