India to meet next year's fiscal deficit target: Moodys
The Dollar Business Bureau International credit rating agency Moody’s Investors Service said on Monday that India’s Union Budget 2018-19 had struck a balance between growth and fiscal prudence. And a little slippage in the target of fiscal deficit would not have material effect on the overall fiscal strength of the country. In the Budget, presented on February 1 by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, the Government has revised its fiscal deficit target for 2018-19 to 3.3% of gross domestic product (GDP) from the previous estimates of 3%. The estimate for 2017-18 has also been revised to 3.5% of GDP, from the original projections of 3.2%. “The revised fiscal consolidation path is modestly shallower than the previous road map, but it does not fundamentally alter India's overall fiscal strength,” said ...
Industry welcomes the balanced Budget
Aamir H Kaki Industry players have welcomed and appreciated the Union Budget 2018-19 and called it a balancing act aimed at inclusive growth for boosting the country’s economy. Focused on strengthening agriculture, rural economy, infrastructure, MSME and exports, the Budget for fiscal 2018-19 was presented by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Thursday. Welcoming the Budget, Federation of Indian Export Organisation (FIEO) said that it’s a balanced Budget for the country aiming at inclusive growth and transforming rural India. FIEO President Ganesh Kumar Gupta said that the target to take agri-exports from $30 billion to $100 billion is very encouraging as agri-exports would be instrumental in doubling farmers’ income. A stable Agri Export Policy based on digitalised current stock position, scientific forecasting of ...
Union Budget 2018-19: Focus on agriculture, employment, MSMEs
The Dollar Business Bureau Guided by mission to strengthen agriculture, employment, rural development, health, education, MSMEs and infrastructure sectors, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley presented the Union Budget 2018-19 in Parliament on Thursday. Reiterating the pledge given by the Government to the people of the country four years ago to give an honest, clean and transparent Government, Jaitley said that the Government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi has successfully implemented a series of fundamental structural reforms to propel India among the fastest growing economies of the world. Jaitley said that India’s agri-exports potential is as high as $100 billion against current exports of $30 billion and to realise this potential, export of agri-commodities will be liberalised. While presenting the Budget, he said, “Indian society, polity ...
Services exports grew at 16.2% during Apr-Sept: Economic Survey
The Dollar Business Bureau India’s services sector registered a robust export growth of 16.2% during the first six months of the current fiscal while the import of services into the country were increased by 17.4% during the period, according to the Economic Survey 2017-18. “During the period April-September 2017-18, growth in services exports and services imports were robust at 16.2% and 17.4%, respectively, said the Survey tabled in the Parliament on Monday by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. In 2016-17, the exports from the sector recorded a growth of 5.7%. “India remained the eighth largest exporter in commercial services in the world in 2016 with a share of 3.4%. This is double the share of India’s merchandise exports in the world at 1.7%, the Survey ...
GDP to grow at 7-7.5% in 2018-19, exports set to rebound: Economic Survey
The Dollar Business Bureau India’s gross domestic product (GDP) is estimated to grow at 7%-7.5% in the 2018-19 fiscal, with exports set to rebound, according to the Economic Survey tabled in parliament by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Monday. “A series of major reforms undertaken over the past year will allow real GDP growth to reach 6.75% this fiscal and will rise to 7 to 7.5% in 2018-19, thereby re-instating India as the world’s fastest growing major economy,” the Survey stated. The reform measures undertaken in 2017-18 can be strengthened further in 2018-19, it added. The Survey highlighted that due to the implementation of Goods and Services Tax (GST), resolution of the long-festering Twin Balance Sheet (TBS) problem by sending the major stressed companies ...
India, ASEAN represent an aspirational world: Jaitley
The Dollar Business Bureau Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Arun Jaitley said on Wednesday India and ASEAN nations represent an aspirational world in the times when the world is looking inwards. “One of our greatest challenges today is that the world has increasingly started looking inwards,” Finance Minister said while speaking at the ASEAN-India Business Meet and Expo organised by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in cooperation with the Finance Ministry and External Affairs Ministry. “In such protectionist times, India and the ASEAN nations represent an aspirational world which represents about 2 billion people,” he added. Jaitley pointed out that India as well as ASEAN were growing fast at a time when the world was slowing down. The two regions represent areas which were ...
GST Council approves rate changes of 29 goods, 53 services, recommends policy changes
The Dollar Business Bureau The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council, in its 25th meeting on Thursday, took some major decisions and approved change in rates of 29 goods and 53 categories of services and discussed measures for ‘anti-evasion’ in order to take care of faltering revenue of indirect taxes. The Council has also discussed measures to simplify the process for filing returns, however, a final decision for which has been deferred for the next meeting. The meeting of GST Council, the apex body on GST decision making chaired by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, was vital as this was the last meeting before the announcement of Union Budget 2018. “GST Council has approved rate changes of 29 goods and 53 categories of services,” Jaitley said, ...
Economic measures to show positive outcome in long-term: Jaitley
The Dollar Business Bureau Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said on Thursday that the positive effect of the economic measures that has been taken by the current government would be visible in the medium to long-term. Jaitley said that in spite of slowdown globally and the previous government leaving the country among the ‘Fragile Five’ nations of the world in 2014, the current government, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, not only undertook huge structural reforms but it also made the country a fastest-growing economy, consecutively for three years. “Some of the structural reforms undertaken by the government were attempted by the previous dispensation too, but it failed to do so because of several reasons,” the Minister said in the Rajya Sabha while replying to ...
