Govt, industry to brainstorm on measures to boost exports

NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 3: 
The export sector’s woes finally seem to have nudged the Centre into action. On Friday, when the GST Council meets to iron out the sector’s problems, three key Union ministers will hold a brainstorming session with officials, exporters and industry bodies to identify measures to lift exports on to a higher growth trajectory.

Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu, Textiles Minister Smriti Irani and Chemicals & Fertilisers Minister Ananth Kumar will hold talks with representatives from key ministries and departments, including Finance, Heavy Industry and MSME, as well as exporters’ and industry bodies, a government official told BusinessLine.

“The inputs from the session will also be used to frame the mid-term review of the Foreign Trade Policy (FTP), which is already delayed. The focus will be on how India can go for a quantum jump in exports,” the official said.

Exports have fallen woefully short of the FTP targets announced in April 2015, which projected annual exports of $900 billion by 2020. However, exports have hovered around $300 billion in the last two years.

Liquidity challenges after the GST regime kicked in and the rupee’s volatility have made the going tougher for exporters.

“The Commerce Ministry realises it is time for a course correction in order to move exports to a higher growth trajectory. Not only will steps need to be taken to address the immediate problems, effective schemes have to be devised to increase their competitiveness,” the official said.

New challenge
With the World Trade Organization declaring earlier this year that India’s per capita Gross National Product (GNP) had exceeded $1,000 for three years in a row (2013, 2012, 2015), the country will now be ineligible for export incentives that only poorer countries are allowed.

“The Ministry will have to look at new options together with affected ministries, such as Textiles, in order to ensure that action is not taken against Indian exports by other WTO member countries,” the official said.Exporter wishlist
Meanwhile, the GST Council is expected to consider some of the requests made by the export sector, which includes exemption from Integrated GST (IGST) on imports of inputs used in exports (under schemes such as Export Promotion Capital Goods and Advance Authorisation); exemption from GST for merchant exporters and wider usage of duty exemption scrips (earned under incentive schemes such as Merchandise Export from India Scheme).

“In the meeting with the Centre on increasing exports, we will highlight problems of the export sector, give possible solutions and suggest a strategy to increase exports,” said Ajay Sahai, Director General, Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO).

Future of textile MSMEs- B2C exports

E-commerce has grown rapidly in recent times and is expected to reach new geographies, soon encompassing all markets, says Rajveer Singh.

The e-commerce market is booming. The Chinese e-commerce sector has grown significantly and has a higher share compared to India. Indian businesses are adopting e-commerce rapidly. However, the rate of expansion is still small as compared to their Chinese counterparts.

The first lesson from the table below is that there is tremendous potential for Indian micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). They can improve their e-commerce transactions in the domestic and global markets by increasing participation in India's extensive e-marketplace.The textile industry holds a significant position globally as textile was the first manufactured item to be exported. Due to size and reach, it has enormous capacity to generate employment and income.

The Indian apparel industry is amongst the largest in the world with a huge manufacturing base and large raw material pool. It is a major contributor to our economy in the domestic and exports markets. By 2021, textile and apparel exports from India to developed nations is expected to touch the US$ 82 billion.

As per the Export Import Data Bank, Ministry of Commerce and Industry:

1. Exports under HS Code 61, i.e. articles of apparel and clothing accessories - knitted or crocheted -- has grown 10.54 per cent from Rs. 50,15,336.86 lakhs in 2015-16 to Rs. 55,43,985.49 lakhs in 2016-17.

2. Exports under HS Code 62, i.e. articles of apparel and clothing accessories not knitted or crocheted, has jumped 1.2 per cent from Rs. 61,02,945.08 lakhs in 2015-16 to Rs. 61,76,253.29 lakhs in 2016-17.

Exports from India are routed majorly to countries like the United States of America, the United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates and Germany. Men's or boy's suits, ensembles, jackets, trousers; women's or girl's suits, ensembles, blazers, dresses, skirts; babies' garments and clothing accessories, T-shirts and singlets represent the significant chunk of India's apparel exports.New technologies are transforming the way people buy and sell. The digital revolution is at its cusp in India, so this is the time for MSMEs to wake up to the tremendous potential of e-commerce apparel exports. Various major initiatives introduced by the Government of India like Digital India, Skill India, Make in India, and Startup India are gaining momentum, indispensable in driving the growth of long-term e-commerce. Apparel export figures for 2016-17 show that the digital economy has moved from potential to mainstream. It is no longer just another channel but the channel to be mastered. The network of apparel in Asia-Pacific forecast for 2016-2021 is expected to be US$ 167.7 billion, a growth rate of nine per cent.

apparel and clothing accessories