On May 19, 2020 The Federation of Indian Export Organisations(FIEO), apex body of exporters informed that Indian exports are expected to fall by 20%Â in the current fiscal, in value terms it will be around USD 50 to 60 billion & also imports due to COVID-19 pandemic.
Major Highlights
i.FIEO has requested the government to provide 2% additional Merchandise Exports from India Scheme(MEIS) support to all exports & 4% to labour-intensive sectors like apparel, leather, handicraft, carpets, marine, tea and processed food.
ii.Merchandise exports constitute around 12% of India’s Gross Domestic Product(GDP), and foreign exchange earnings are around USD 320 billion.
Key Points
i.As both import & export are expected to fall there will be no significant pressure on the balance of trade. But fall in export will come up with an issue on job creation and also cause loss of jobs.
ii.In regard to the stimulus package exporters need more support to improve their competitiveness in the global markets as China has started production.
iii.The depreciation in the rupee is not as sharp as like South Korea, Turkey, Indonesia or Brazil have witnessed which pressurises the Indian exports.
About FIEO:
FIEO was set up jointly by the Ministry of Commerce, Government of India and private trade and industry in 1965. It is an apex body of the export promotion councils, commodity boards and export development authorities in India & provides an interface between the international trading community of India & the central and state.
Headquarters– Niryat Bhawan, NewDelhi
President– Sharad Kumar Saraf
About MEIS:
It was established under the Foreign Trade Policy of India(FTP 2015-20). It provides incentive in the form of duty credit scrip to the exporter to compensate for his loss on payment of duties.
Aim– to make Indian products more competitive in the global markets
The schemes replaced by the MEISÂ are- Focus Product Scheme (FPS), Focus Market Scheme (FMS), Market Linked Focus Product Scheme (MLFPS), Agriculture Infrastructure incentive scheme, Vishesh Krishi Gramin Upaj Yojna (VKGUY).
