Daily News - Monday, 8 July 2024

India may rent oil storage in Southeast Asia for reserves (mint)

Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Ltd (ISPRL) is exploring options to rent storage space in Southeast Asia, particularly in Singapore, Japan, and South Korea, to enhance India's energy security by storing crude oil strategically and economically. This initiative aims to ensure commercial viability and accessibility, with considerations of reasonable rental charges and transportation costs. Additionally, India has previously considered storing oil abroad, including a 2020 agreement with the US, and is currently in discussions with Norwegian energy giant Equinor to bolster its strategic petroleum reserves, meeting the International Energy Agency's criteria of maintaining oil stock levels equivalent to at least 90 days of net imports.

Commerce min targets $100 billion electronics, textile exports by FY30 (Business Standard)

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry held discussions last week to set export targets for key sectors for the fiscal year 2029-30 (FY30), focusing on electronics, textiles, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, and agriculture. The goal is to achieve $100 billion in electronics exports, up from $29.1 billion in FY24, driven primarily by mobile devices, and supported by companies like Apple shifting significant production to India. Textile exports aim to reach $100 billion, with substantial growth in ready-made garments and cotton products. Pharmaceutical exports are targeted to double to $55 billion, while organic and inorganic chemical exports aim for $65 billion, and agriculture and allied products target $85 billion, all by FY30.

Trade, economy, tariff on PM’s Russia agenda (Business Standard)

India's trade deficit with Russia reached $57 billion in FY24, making Russia the largest source of India's crude oil imports, with Prime Minister Modi set to address trade imbalances during his visit to Russia on July 8-9. The trade deficit, which is the second highest after China, reflects slow growth in India's exports to Russia, which amounted to $4.26 billion, compared to $61.24 billion in imports, primarily crude oil. Addressing logistics and payment issues, such as establishing the Chennai-Vladivostok Maritime Corridor and increasing rupee trade, are seen as crucial steps to boost India's exports and improve the trade balance with Russia.

Power sector seeks thrust on T&D infra, skill development (Financial Express)

As temperatures rise and power demand peaks, analysts anticipate the upcoming Budget to include reforms that will bolster India's power infrastructure, focusing on climate-resilient systems and coal-based capacity until renewable energy can reliably meet demand. There is also an expectation for incentives to reactivate the balance of plant segment in thermal power and concessional duties on solar module imports to support renewable energy projects, particularly green hydrogen. Additionally, the government is likely to continue efforts towards decarbonizing hard-to-abate sectors with potential budget allocations for pilot carbon capture projects, alongside initiatives for rooftop solar and offshore wind projects to meet the 2030 RE capacity target of 500 GW.

SEZ Units set to get Refund of Cess on Imports (The Economic Times)

The Centre will refund the compensation cess levied on imported goods under GST to businesses operating in special economic zones (SEZs) and their developers retroactively from July 1, 2017. Additionally, the Central Board of Indirect Tax and Customs has directed refunds of 5% GST collected on food packages intended for the public distribution system (PDS), with total refunds estimated to be around ₹6,500 crore. These actions, following a recent GST Council decision and an Andhra Pradesh High Court ruling, will see refunds issued within the next six months, including for the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd (NAFED), which supplies food packs for the PDS.