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Process to sign FTA with Asean completed’
India has completed the internal process for signing the much-waited free trade agreement in services and investments with Asean, which is set to boost its economic engagement with the 10-nation grouping. "We have completed our process for signing the FTA on services and investment and await the completion of the processes amongst the Asean countries," external affairs minister Salman Khurshid said. He was addressing 'Delhi Dialogue VI' -- the sixth edition of the annual Asean-India dialogue. After operationalising the FTA in goods in 2011, Asean and India were engaged in widening the base of the pact by including services and investments.
(Source: Financial Express)
Norms for gold import in India tightened
The government has tightened norms for Indians bringing gold into the country following a spurt in smuggling and pressure on inward remittances as overseas workers prefer to bring their savings in gold. Passengers will now have to mention the engraved serial number of gold bars in the baggage receipt issued by Customs. For bringing gold in any other form, including ornaments, passengers will have to declare item-wise inventory of the ornaments being imported with baggage receipt, according to a Central Board of Excise & Customs directive. The apex indirect taxes body has also directed its field officials to ascertain the antecedents of such passengers, source of funding for gold as well as duty being paid in foreign currency, person responsible for booking of tickets to prevent the possibility of misuse of the facility by unscrupulous elements, who may hire such eligible passengers to carry gold for them. "It has come to the notice of the board that there has been a spurt in import of gold by eligible passengers through various airports in the recent past across the country," the CBEC directive said on Thursday. As per current rules, any passenger of Indian origin or a passenger holding a valid passport issued under the Passport Act, 1967 coming to India after a period of not less than six months of stay abroad is eligible to import gold in the form of bars and ornaments on payment of 10% Customs duty. The board said there is no uniformity in clearance of such eligible passengers. At many airports, the engraved serial number of gold bars and tola bars are not mentioned in the baggage receipts when imported by passengers.
(Source: Economic Times)
Polls, slowdown may cloud outlook for states’ finances: India Ratings
Election spending and a prolonged economic slowdown could lower the outlook for Indian states’ finances from ‘stable’ to ‘negative’, Fitch’s India unit (India Ratings) warned on Thursday while forecasting a marginal 0.1-percentage-point fiscal slippage for them during 2013-14. Also, a decline in global crude prices could pose a risk of falling state revenues as almost 30% of states' own revenues come from VAT on fuels, the rating agency said, adding guarantees from and high debt of state public sector undertakings could impact the credit profile of some states. India heads for Lok Sabha polls next month and political parties are dolling out various welfare schemes to woo voters already hurt by high food inflation and tardy public services. The economic slowdown has also muted income growth and lowered job opportunities. "A prolonged growth slowdown leading to muted revenue growth could lead to a negative outlook revision. A loose fiscal policy in the run-up to the forthcoming general elections could lead to the outlook being revised to negative," India Ratings said. Although states have shown greater adherence to fiscal rectitude in the past few years and budgeted a combined fiscal deficit of 2.2% of GDP for 2013-14, India Ratings expects the actual deficit to touch 2.3% this fiscal while the revenue surplus is also likely to be lower at 0.1% of GDP in 2013-14 compared to the budgeted 0.4%. Despite the minor slippages, India Ratings maintains a ‘stable’ outlook for 2014-15 as it expects state finances to remain resilient to the on-going economic slowdown. Assuming the economy will gather some steam next year and grow 5.6% during 2014-15, India Ratings forecast states' fiscal deficit to decline to 2.2% of GDP next year while the revenue surplus may rise to 0.2%. The aggregate debt of states as a percentage of GDP is likely to increase to 21.7% in FY14 from the budgeted estimate of 21.5%. Despite this slippage, debt will be sustainable as nominal growth in the economy, in excess of the interest rate on debt, will continue to support the agency’s debt sustainability expectations.
(Source: Financial Express)
Turmoil in Ukraine to impact Indian exports: EEPC
Political turmoil in Ukraine involving the Russian Federation may have a negative fallout for Indian exports, engineering exporters' body EEPC India said. "The current turmoil will give a setback to the recent efforts to promote exports to the former members of the erstwhile Soviet Union," EEPC India Chairman Anupam Shah said in a statement. He said the political problem in the region is not a good news for the Indian exporters, who in any case had apprehensions in reaching out to the resource-rich Central Asian countries. "Though Ukraine does not regard itself as member of the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States), it has a geographical rub-off with other erstwhile members of the former Soviet Union. "While the Indian government along with the industry chambers has been taking a lot of initiatives to promote trade in the region, the present developments do not augur well for trade," Shah said. The commerce ministry along with different chambers has planned to organise 14 India shows in the next 14 months in key countries of CIS to regain significant trade ground in the former member states of the erstwhile USSR. "India's trade with erstwhile USSR used to account for 26 per cent of the country's total trade which has now been reduced to less than one per cent. The problems in Ukraine have surfaced at a time when the region had emerged among fastest growing regions of the world along with Asean (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), Latin America and Africa," he said. Central Asian countries are quite rich in natural resources like oil, natural gas, metals and minerals. They are also a useful source of several other raw materials, Shah added.
(Source: Economic Times)
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