Climbing Re hurts garment, handicraft & carpet exports
Economic Times, India
NEW DELHI: The appreciation of the rupee has resulted in a decline in exports of a number of products including readymade garments, primary & semi-finished iron & steel, plastic & linoleum, non-ferrous metals, marine products, sports goods, handicrafts and carpets. The decline has been across the first 10 months of the fiscal, preliminary estimates made by the department of commerce reveal.
A deceleration in growth has also been recorded in exports of cotton yarn fabrics, made-ups and electronic goods. The commerce department is continuing to step up pressure on the finance ministry for specific additional measures to help put the sectors back on growth track.
Speaking to ET, commerce department officials said there have been discussions on the measures required for helping exporters, but the finance ministry had not responded adequately in Budget 2008. “We are in continuous discussions with the finance ministry to ensure that at least the annual supplement to the foreign trade policy includes incentives for the affected sectors,� an official said.
The commerce department has cautioned the government that job losses could go up to 20 lakh due to fall in exports if remedial measures are not taken. A few thousand jobs have been lost due to closure of units and decline in production in sectors such as textiles and handicrafts.
The V Krishnamurthy committee set up by the prime minister to suggest measures to help exporters tide over the rupee crisis also proposed sector-specific incentives to provide relief to the affected sectors, sources said.
The rupee appreciated 12% in 2007. The government announced measures to help exporters deal with the appreciating rupee by announcing relief packages that included interest rate subventions and enhancement of reimbursement rates under schemes such as DEPB and duty drawback.