CATEGORIES

'German Firms Use India As A Key Hub'

Germany Trade and Invest (GTAI), the economic development agency of Germany, has been assisting German businesses in seeking opportunities in India and vice versa for almost three decades now. The Dollar Business caught up with Asha-Maria Sharma, Director, GTAI India, to understand how GTAI has been helping German and Indian companies – particularly SMEs – connect.

FIPA Will Boost Canadian Investment In India

Canada’s economic and trade relations with India are expanding at a never-seen-before pace. And Canada’s Minister of International Trade François-Philippe Champagne was in India recently with an agenda to strengthen ties further. The Dollar Business caught up with him to understand how the two nations plan to intensify and boost bilateral trade.

Profits On Your Palms!

India is the world’s biggest importer of palm oil. Interestingly, over the last one year, while imports of crude palm oil has been on a decline, that of refined palm oil has been rising sharply. Export taxes by major producers like Indonesia and Malaysia have a lot to do with this anomaly as does India’s custom duties. Is this the right time to jump into imports of RBD Pamolein? The Dollar Business examines.

Acquisitions Have Fuelled Our Growth

Wockhardt is a true Indian pharmaceutical multinational with full-fledged operations in several countries, including US, UK, Ireland and France. In an exclusive interaction with The Dollar Business, Dr. Murtaza Khorakiwala, Managing Director of Wockhardt Group, talks about the company’s innovative business models that are in motion to make the most of emerging opportunities across the globe.

Steel Industry Is On An Expansion Mode

India’s steel industry today faces challenging market conditions arising out of a global steel glut. In an freewheeling interaction with The Dollar Business, Chaudhary Birender Singh, Union Minister of Steel, GoI, talks at length about the government’s initiatives and plans to overcome global challenges while fueling growth and enhancing competitiveness of Indian steel industry.

China Is A Focus Market For Us!

For more than three decades now, Carpet Export Promotion Council (CEPC) has been instrumental in connecting Indian carpet exporters with overseas buyers. ‘Rugs of India’, a brand promoted by CEPC, today, defines India’s hand-weaving skills, globally. However, when it comes to exports, even these exotic, traditional rugs need to be branded and marketed well in the face of competition from machine-made products. CEPC Chairman Mahavir Pratap Sharma explains why.

Red-tapism Is Still An Issue In Exports

Exports wasn’t Anil Peshawari’s forte. But in 1999, this chartered accountant decided to take the plunge and start a garment export business. Come today and he has been successful in establishing Meenu Creation, a 100% export-oriented company that boasts of an annual turnover of Rs.300 crore. In an interaction, Peshawari shares lessons that experience has taught him and other thoughts on textile exports business.

Goa Certainly Needs To Market Itself Better 

Think about holidays and chances are high that you would be visualising the serene beaches of Goa, a holiday destination that is in the bucket list of all leisure travellers, foreign and domestic alike. The Dollar Business caught up with Manohar Azgaonkar, the newly appointed Minister for Tourism of Goa, to understand how his Ministry plans to make Goa a round-the-year tourist destination and increase forex earnings.

From Afghanistan With Love

Asafoetida, or hing as it is popularly known, has been a darling of almost every Indian kitchen since ages. What's more? Its recently found use as a product of medicinal value is driving its demand higher. And since India does not produce enough asafoetida to meet domestic demand, its imports makes for a lucrative business proposition.

Synthetic Jute From China Is Hurting Our Exports

Though India continues to be the largest producer and processor of natural jute in the world, very little seems to have changed for the industry participants over the last many decades. Manish Kajaria, Chairman, Jute Product Development and Export Promotion Council (JPDEPC), talks about the many challenges that the jute industry faces in the current times and what needs to be done to overcome them.

We Will Surpass Our Export Target

Coconut Development Board (CDB) is one of the youngest export promotion councils in India. In a freewheeling interaction with The Dollar Business, Dr. Anand Kumar Singh, the Immediate Past Chairman of CDB, who now heads the Horticultural Science division of Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), talks about the initiatives taken up by CDB to boost exports of coconut products.

Rcep Can Boost Business Across a Large Region

New Zealand and India have a lot in common – from their love for cricket to their Commonwealth heritage and much more. Despite this the bilateral trade between the two countries is yet to live up to its potential. In an exclusive interaction with The Dollar Business, Grahame Morton, High Commissioner of New Zealand to India, talks about various ways to improve social, political and trade ties between the two nations.

MEIS: When Change Is the Only Constant

The Merchandise Export from India Scheme (MEIS), which was introduced in FTP 2015-2020, has undergone several changes. Recently again, while 2,901 tarifflines were added to the MEIS schedule, reward rates across 575 tarifflines were altered. While just the word ‘added’ may sound good to some exporters, for the most, frequent changes and ambiguities in notifications are confusing many.

Boon Or Bane?

India holds the distinction of initiating the largest number of anti-dumping cases amongst all WTO members. Under WTO regulations, anti-dumping measures are usually taken to protect the domestic industry. However, critics argue that India has been mostly interpreting and applying the law to protect vested interests and negate competition. And that by initiating an ever-increasing number of anti-dumping cases, the country is hurting its downstream industries and in turn competitiveness. Is it time to review and fine-tune India’s approach towards anti-dumping measures?

'RCEP Will Boost Bilateral Trade'

Malaysia and India have always maintained a strong trade relationship. The much-accomplished ties are now being backed by an increasing number of trade agreements. In an exclusive interaction with The Dollar Business, H.E. Dato’ Hidayat Abdul Hamid, High Commissioner of Malaysia to India, discusses the ways and means to further strengthen the economic relationship between the two countries.

Ringing Of The Cash Register. Sweet Sound

Imports of electronic cash registers (ECR) and point of sale (PoS) terminals has become a lucrative business, especially over the last year, thanks to the acceptance of retail automation, implementation of GST and the government’s thrust on making India a digital economy. An analysis of whether it makes sense to import these products in volumes. And from which supply markets.

Export Factoring: A Bridge Too Far?

Factoring as a tool of obtaining quick access to short-term export financing and mitigating risks related to payment delays and defaults by overseas buyers is gaining traction the world over. Countries like Brazil, China, Germany and Taiwan have leveraged factoring to grow their exports. Despite the many advantages of factoring and a growing demand for exports credit among Indian MSMEs, factors like lack of awareness, a perception of high interest rates and cumbersome documentation processes, have prevented the growth of factoring services in India. To bring matters into perspective, less than a percentage point of India's exports are backed by factoring services. However, factors are optimistic about the future and are taking steps to raise awareness about their services amongst the Indian foreign trade community. Will factoring finally gain acceptance in India? The Dollar Business investigates the curious case of India's factoring industry.

A PTA Will Boost Bilateral Trade

Indo-Moroccan cultural and trade ties, which date back to the 14th century, have been witnessing significant growth over the last few years. The Dollar Business caught up with H.E. Mohamed Maliki, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Morocco to India, to understand what makes these two nations ideal trading partners and how they can further strengthen bilateral engagements to boost trade flows.

The Quality Of Indian Exports Can Improve

Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO), an independent agency recognised by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan, has been promoting bilateral trade and investment between Japan and India since 1966. The Dollar Business caught up with Kazuya Nakajo, Chief Director General of JETRO India, to understand how JETRO is helping Japanese and Indian firms leverage each other’s strengths.

We Make Things That Make India Proud

Larsen & Toubro Limited (L&T) is one true Indian multinational that serves customers in over 30 countries, across various industries. And still at the helm of its affairs is a man who has masterminded L&T’s transformation into a world-class conglomerate. A. M. Naik, Group Executive Chairman, L&T, speaks about what it takes to lead a multinational giant, designed to deliver engineering solutions globally.

Of The Seas, With The Tide

India is unquestionably known for its exports of frozen shrimps and prawns. However, there is another category of seafood product that is fast gaining recognition the world over – cuttlefish and squid. This category is already contributing 5% to India’s total seafood exports basket. The Dollar Business measures the export potential of these sea-food items.

10 Ways To Boost Your Exports By Exploiting Online Marketplaces

Online marketplaces have been an absolute godsend for ex-porters in India and abroad. The new-age exporter no longer has to travel long hours in a cramped plane to meet prospective buyers and showcase his products. Nor does he have to spend precious dollars buying exhibition space in expensive trade fairs and carrying tonnes of samples and marketing collaterals, in the hope that business will materialise from the few genuinely interested buyers who turn up at the booth.

Exports Give Us A Global Edge

Hyundai Motor India Ltd. (HMIL) began exporting in 1999, when it shipped a batch of 20 cars to Nepal. Come today and the company is exporting over two million cars every year. In an exclusive interaction with The Dollar Business, Rakesh Srivastava, Sr. Vice President and Division Head (Sales & Marketing), HMIL, talks about the importance of the Indian automobile market in the global scheme of things.

Brewing Profits Worldwide

Coffee is one of the world’s most widely traded commodities. And going by official figures, India too seems to have gathered a fair amount of expertise in its trade! What’s more? Despite the ongoing slump in overall exports, the country managed to ship out 63% of its production last year and a significant part of that to Italy, the Mecca of coffee! The Dollar Business explores the ways and means to catapult India into becoming a force to reckon with in global coffee trade. 

Policy Unpredictability Is An Issue

Korean brands such as Hyundai, LG and Samsung are household names in India. Indeed, there seems to be a strong India-South Korea connect, aided by phenomenal popularity of Korean pop among several Indians. The Dollar Business caught up with the South Korean Ambassador to India, H.E. Hyun Cho, to understand the current state of affairs of Indo-Korean trade ties and to discuss ways to bolster them further. 

Exports Is The Lifeblood Of The Sports Industry

Since its inception in 1958, the Sports Goods Export Promotion Council (SGEPC) has been relentlessly promoting exports of sports goods and toys from India. In an exclusive interaction with The Dollar Business, Raghunath Singh Rana, Chairman of SGEPC, talks about the Council’s journey so far, and explains challenges faced by the Indian sports goods exporters.

MSMES: In Search Of A Status

Policymakers plan to make MSMEs the plank on which the country will ride through global economic speed breakers and achieve the ambitious export target of $900 billion by 2020. However, the problem is that MSMEs largely remain unappreciated and unattended. While there are many trade facilitation schemes in FTP for big players, almost none on the lines are available to MSMEs. Can’t we have a few extended to MSMEs? How about a separate ‘Status Holder’ categorisation for MSMEs?

We Are Expanding Our Trade Basket

Despite huge geographical distance, Chile’s relationship with India has withstood the test of time. In fact, Chile offers many winning propositions to Indian companies and is an ideal springboard to foray into Latin America. The Dollar Business caught up with H.E. Andrés Barbé González, Ambassador of Chile to India, to understand how the two countries plan to strengthen their socio-economic ties and boost bilateral trade.

A Game Changer for Connectivity

Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) was set up in 1986 with an objective of development and regulation of inland waterways for shipping and navigation. In a freewheeling interaction with The Dollar Business, Amitabh Verma, Chairman, IWAI, talks about the progress the country has achieved on this front so far and discusses how inland waterways can boost exports from India.

We Must Diversify Bilateral Trade

Brazil and India have many things in common – from enormous economies to vibrant cultures. The two are also members of the BRICS trade bloc and are working towards improving bilateral ties. In an interaction with The Dollar Business, H. E. Tovar Da Silva Nunes, the Brazilian Ambassador to India, discusses at length the past and present state of relationship, and the roadmap for the future to fortify bilateral ties.