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Russian govt to infuse $670 mn in Sistema Shyam
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Seafood exports see 8% growth in 2008-09
Kochi, Source : The Economic Times
Indian seafood exports have grown by 9.7% in rupee terms to touch Rs 7,617.97 crore in the April-February period of 2008-09 compared to the same period last year. In terms of quantity, the exports have increased by 7.9% to reach a level of 530,033 tonnes during the same period.
However, in terms of dollar, the exports fell by 1.4% to $1,705.45 million during the same period. The unit value realisation fell to $3.22 per kg during April-February period from $3.52 per kg in the previous corresponding period.
Among the products, shrimp continued to be the major export item accounting for 44% of the kitty. Among the major markets, EU — the largest market for Indian seafood with a share of 33% — recorded an increase of 4% in quantity, 3.7% in rupee value.
But it, however, declined by 6.4% in the dollar earnings. Japan — the second largest market with a share of 14.9% — recorded a negative growth in quantity and dollar value but a marginal growth in rupee value. China — the third largest market with a share of 14% — recorded a growth of 20% in rupee value.
The US, which stood at second place last year, fell to fourth place with a share of 12%.
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CII projects GDP at 6.1% on lower key rates, infra boost
New Delhi, Source : The Financial Express
Chandrajit Banerjee, director general, CII
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The economy is expected to witness a higher GDP growth rate in 2009-10 if government takes to monetary easing by cutting repo and reverse repo rates by at least 50 basis points, implements large infrastructure projects and revives confidence by ensuring a business-friendly environment, according to Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
The state of economy report by CII states that the economy should be driven by factors such as the moderation in the prices of essential commodities like food and fuel as well as reduction in indirect tax rates. Rural demand remains strong considering the good performance of the agricultural sector.CII is factoring in a base case of 6.1% GDP growth in 2009-10. This scenario, factors in sectoral growth rates of 2.8-3%, 5-5.5% and 7.5-8%, respectively for agriculture, industry and services. The Indian economy slowed down considerably during the second half of 2008-09 in the wake of the global financial meltdown as well as a cyclical downturn in the domestic economy. Chandrajit Banerjee, director general, CII said, “The fact that rural demand remains unaffected by global developments is a source of strength for the Indian economy”. An analysis of the financial performance of 324 companies (173 in manufacturing and 151 in the services sector) for the quarter ending March 2009 revealed that sales growth had decreased with a contraction in net profit in this quarter.
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EXPORTS UP BY 3.4 per cent IN APRIL-MARCH 2008-09 INDIA’S FOREIGN TRADE: MARCH 2009
India’s cumulative value of exports for the period April-March, 2008-09 was US $ 168704 million (Rs.766935 crore) as against US $ 163132 million (Rs.655863 crore) registering a growth of 3.4 per cent in Dollar terms and 16.9 per cent in Rupee terms over the same period last year. Exports during March, 2008-09 were valued at US $ 11516 million which was 33.3 per cent lower than the level of US $ 17254 million during March, 2008. In rupee terms, exports touched Rs.58997 crore, which was 15.3 per cent lower than the value of exports during March, 2007-08.
India’s imports during March, 2008-09 were valued at US $ 15561 million representing a decrease of 34.0 per cent over the level of imports valued at US $ 23574 million in March, 2007-08. In Rupee terms, imports decreased by 16.2 per cent. Cumulative value of imports for the period April- March, 2008-09 was US $ 287759 million (Rs.1305503 crore) as against US $ 251654 million (Rs.1012312 crore) registering a growth of 14.3 per cent in Dollar terms and 29.0 per cent in Rupee terms over the same period last year.
Oil imports during March, 2008-09 were valued at US $ 3806 million which was 58.1 per cent lower than oil imports valued at US $ 9075 million in the corresponding period last year. Oil imports during April-March, 2008-09 were valued at US $ 93176 million which was 16.9 per cent higher than the oil imports of US$ 79715 million in the corresponding period last year.
Non-oil imports during March, 2008-09 were estimated at US $ 11755 million which was 18.92 per cent lower than non-oil imports of US $ 14498 million in March, 2007-08.
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India may steel show in global road to recovery
New Delhi, Source : The Economic Times
Chances of the Indian economy recovering faster than its global peers from the current slowdown looked brighter with the World Steel Association (worldsteel) forecasting a 2% growth in the country’s steel consumption in 2009, making it the only major economy to post an increase in a year that will see global consumption of the metal fall by around 15%. India, which accounts for around 5% of the global steel consumption, will use 53.5 million tonnes of the metal in 2009. The global consumption of steel this year is expected to be around 1,019 million tonnes.
Worldsteel, an international trade body whose 180 members account for 85% of the world’s steel output, has said the global steel industry will stabilise later this year to stage a gradual recovery in 2010. Egypt and Iran are the only other countries that will witness an increase in steel demand this year. Steel consumption in the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) is expected to fall by 5.9% in 2009. The ‘short-term steel outlook’ of the Brussels-based association said steel demand in the US and Europe would shrink by 36.6% and 25%, respectively. Steel use in China and Japan are slated to fall by 5% and 20.4%, respectively.
Abheek Barua, Chief Economist, HDFC Bank |
While worldsteel did not cite any reason for the growth in steel consumption in India, analysts said this could be attributed to the low per capita steel consumption at present. The country’s per capital steel consumption is about 45 kg, compared with the global average of 200 kg. “Considering a GDP growth forecast of 5-6%, spending on various construction and infrastructure projects will grow this year, which will reflect in an increased steel consumption. Since investments have come to a standstill in most economies, steel consumption is likely to get impacted globally,” said Abheek Barua, chief economist, HDFC Bank.
Growth in the construction and infrastructure sectors could help India record a 5% growth in steel consumption, said Naveen Vohra, partner, Ernst & Young. “Demand in the auto sector has also started looking up on the back of a marginal improvement in the credit situation,” he said. Despite low levels of steel consumption in the country, demand had fallen sharply during October-December 2008. The steel industry, however, staged a smart recovery in the first three months of 2009 on account of a revival in demand from the automobile, rural infrastructure and housing sectors. Steel production and consumption grew 1.2% and 3.8%, respectively, in the January-March quarter over the same period last year, after posting dismal figures in the previous quarter.
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Net sales grew by 8.7% during Q4 of 2008-09 in comparison to 23.7% during previous quarter
The moderation in sales growth has been accompanied by a similar moderation in raw material costs, reflecting the decline in global commodity prices. As a result, net profits of the sample of companies contracted by 1% during Q4 of 2008-09, a slight improvement when compared to contraction of 2.4% in the previous quarter. The chamber also pointed out that at a time when the global economy and global trade are projected to contract, it will be extremely important to maintain counter-cyclical fiscal and monetary policy. The drivers of economic growth have to come from domestic sources. Therefore, the government should maintain higher spending, especially in the creation of public assets. Monetary policy, in turn, needs to be supportive.
“Any pressure on interest rates to rise at this juncture will crowd out private spending”, said Banerjee. The global financial turmoil also resulted in a sharp decline in capital inflows into India. During April-December 2008, the balance of payments ran a deficit of $20.4 billion and RBI’s foreign exchange reserves declined by $57.4 billion during 2008-09. This decline has been arrested somewhat since March 2009, reflecting some revival in capital flows.
In order to guard against possible future downturns, policies are needed to ensure that India remains an attractive investment destination. In particular, the policy framework in India must remain conducive to attracting large FDI inflows. |
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