India services export flat at $14 bn in September, import grows

In September 2016, India had exported services worth USD 13.77 billion. The import grew 1.7 per cent from USD 8.30 billion last year.
Services export of India remained flat at USD 13.73 billion in September year-on-year while import slightly picked up to USD 8.45 billion, showed RBI data.

In September 2016, India had exported services worth USD 13.77 billion. The import grew 1.7 per cent from USD 8.30 billion last year.In August 2017, the services export was USD 13.7 billion while the import came in at USD 8.66 billion.

Cumulatively, the services export during April-September read USD 80.33 billion. Import of services was valued at USD 46.74 billion in the first half of the fiscal, showed the data on India's International Trade in Services released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

India is one of the major economies contributing to the world services export industry.

The services sector contributes to about 55 per cent in India's gross domestic product.

The data for the latest month comes with a lag of 45 days.

The data published by the RBI is provisional and undergoes revision when the Balance of Payments (BoP) data is released on a quarterly basis.

India's coffee exports up 9.36% in 2016-17 marketing year

Coffee exports from India, Asia’s third-largest producer and exporter of coffee, rose by 9.36 per cent to 3,76,873 tonne in the marketing year that ended September 2017, buoyed by higher global prices, according to state-run Coffee Board.

The country's coffee shipments stood at 3,44,613 tonne in the 2015-16 marketing year.

"Two factors contributed for higher shipments in 2016-17. Firstly, there was enough domestic supply to meet the export demand as the domestic output was record in 2015-16. Also, global prices were better," a senior Board official told PTI.

As a result, coffee exports remained robust both in terms of volume and value in 2016-17, he said.
According to the Board data, the export value realisation rose 7.31 per cent to Rs 1,64,284 per tonne of coffee in 2016 -17 from Rs 1,53,089 tonnne in the year-ago period. Total coffee exports in value terms rose to Rs 6,191.43 crore from Rs 5,275 crore in the said period, it added.

The domestic supply was adequate as the output was record 3.48 lakh tonne in the 2015-16 crop year.

Normally, robusta variety comprises 70 per cent of the total coffee exports, while the rest is arabica coffee.

Major export destinations are Italy, Germany, Turkey, Russian Federation and Belgium, among others.

Coffee exports from India

Modi government finds a fix for India's big economic worries; remedial measures likely soon

NEW DELHI: The government may soon unveil a package of measures to speed up growth, generate employment, lift exports and step up investment in infrastructure.

A broad framework to boost the economy was discussed in a meeting of ministers and officials chaired by finance minister Arun Jaitley late Tuesday evening as the government grappled with a slump in growth.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will take a final decision on the measures, according to people with knowledge of the deliberations. “We may need to take some specific, targeted steps... It's not as if there is a course correction,” a government official said.

There has been concern in government circles over growth slumping to a three-year low of 5.7% in the April-June quarter with disruption due to the rollout of goods and services tax (GST) and lingering impact of demonetisation being the primary cause. A rise in the current account deficit and inflation has added to worries. Some economists have argued that the decline is structural in nature and needs to be addressed appropriately.

Finance minister Jaitley is expected to consult other ministries before preparing a detailed plan that will be presented to the prime minister. The plan is expected to examine the reasons for the slowdown and the measures that can be taken to accelerate growth. A stocktaking meeting by the prime minister could not take place on Tuesday.

Chief economic advisor Arvind Subramanian had briefed the prime minister on the economic situation last week.

The meeting was attended by commerce and industry minister Suresh Prabhu, Niti Aayog vice chairman Rajiv Kumar, secretaries of key economic ministries and the additional secretary to the PM.

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) called for a 100 basis point reduction in interest rates to “inject huge growth impulse” and urged the Centre and states to ensure that public capital investment remains elevated even as it pointed to a rebound in many sectors. A basis point is 0.01percentage point. The Reserve Bank of India is set to make its next monetary policy statement on October 4.

FISCAL ESCAPE CLAUSE
State Bank of India’s Ecowrap said the economy has been in slowdown mode since the second quarter of FY17 and such prolonged slump cannot be called technical or transient.

Quarterly growth has declined from 7.9% in first quarter of FY17 to 5.7% in first quarter of FY18. SBI group chief economic advisor Soumya Kanti Ghosh said there is urgent need of a fiscal push to shore up growth. That may not be easy since the government has pledged to reduce fiscal deficit to 3.2% of GDP this year and 3% next year.

EXPORTS AND JOBS WORRY
India’s exports have not picked up to the extent expected even as the global economy has rebounded. Export growth was 8.57% in the April-August period while imports rose 26.63%, worsening the trade deficit and the current account deficit.

The appreciation of the rupee has eroded India’s exports competitiveness while teething troubles with GST have not helped. Exporters met revenue secretary Hasmukh Adhia to present demands for relief.The sluggish growth has also led to worries about job creation.

India to soon allow 300,000 tons of raw sugar imports

NEW DELHI: India will soon allow imports of 300,000 tonnes of raw sugar on the country’s southern ports, a government source said on Tuesday. “The imports will be allowed in a day or two,” the source added.
India’s food minister said on Monday the country would soon take a decision on the need to import sugar.

Coal imports decline to 192 million tonnes in FY17

Import of coal saw a decline of 6.37 percent to 191.95 million tonnes (MT) in 2016-17 on higher production by Coal India (CIL) that saw the country move to a regime of surplus coal.

Comparatively, in 2015-16 fiscal, coal imports stood at 203.95 MT, as per official data by the government.

"On enhanced production by Coal India (CIL), the country has moved from a regime of coal scarcity to a coal surplus situation," the document said.

As against the demand of 884.87 MT of coal, the total domestic production stood at 659.27 MT, it said.

The Centre has announced plans to boost CIL's annual production to the level of 1 billion tonnes by 2019 to meet the growing fuel demand.

Under the provisions of the Coal Mines (Special Provisional) Act, 2015, 30 mines have been allocated to private sector companies by way of auction for specified end uses till date.

The ongoing fiscal also shows a declining trend, especially of thermal coal.

Thermal and steam coal imports have fallen 17.37 per cent at the top 12 major ports to 29.82 MT during April-July this fiscal, according to the Indian Ports Association (IPA).

The ports, under the control of the Centre, had handled 36.09 MT of thermal and steam coal during the same period of the previous fiscal.

Thermal coal is the mainstay of India's energy programme as 70 per cent of power generation is dependent on the dry fuel.

Handling of coking coal, used mainly in steel-making, has also dipped 4.45 per cent to 16.51 MT, as per the latest data released by the IPA.

These ports had handled 17.27 MT of coking coal in April-July period of 2016-17.

Together, they handled 46.33 MT coal during April-July this fiscal as against 53.36 MT in the same period of the previous year.

India is the third-largest producer of coal after China and the US and has 299 billion tonnes of resources and 123 billion tonnes of proven reserves, which may last for over 100 years.

The country has 12 major ports - Kandla, Mumbai, JNPT, Marmugao, New Mangalore, Cochin, Chennai, Ennore, V.O. Chidambarnar, Visakhapatnam, Paradip and Kolkata (including Haldia) — which handle approximately 65 per cent of the country's total cargo traffic.

Imports of Coal