The Fiscal Augment

The objective of Budget 2021 was clearly to undo the damage of the coronavirus pandemic on the country and its economy. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman aptly pointed out – for India to achieve its five trillion economy goal, the manufacturing sector needs to grow in the double digits. The Budget 2021 is a good start in this direction.

The government’s commitment to double its budgetary expenditure to Rs 15700 crore for MSMEs, will be a big boost for the sector. The Rs 1.97 lakh crore production-linked incentive scheme, which is now extended to 13 sectors, will uplift the overall sentiments of the manufacturing sector and MSMEs at large. It will also allow MSMEs to offer high-quality products at competitive prices in the global supply chain. Proposed projects like the development of seven Mega Investment Textile Parks and five major fishery harbors will provide a competitive edge to Indian exporters in the international market.

We are also optimistic that the subsidy announced for the shipping industry will develop the freight infrastructure in the country and provide much-needed relief to the exporters currently grappling with high freight costs.

FM doubles budgetary allocation for MSMEs, but one scheme gets the king's share

For the Covid hit MSMEs, the key highlight of the Union budget 2021 remained a higher outlay to the sector. To accelerate the revival of the Covid- hit sector, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has made a provision of Rs 15,700 crore for the sector. The sector, touted to be the backbone of the nation’s economy, was allocated Rs 7,572 crore in the previous union Budget of 2020-21.

Farm exports defy overall trend in 2020, see 9.8 percent growth

India’s overall merchandise exports have fallen 15.5% year-on-year during April-December. But the same period has seen its farm exports register 9.8% growth – thanks to agricultural production being relatively unaffected by the Covid-19-induced lockdown and a steep surge in global commodity prices.

India's exports expand for second consecutive month in January

India’s merchandise exports and imports expanded for the second consecutive month in January, signalling a turnaround in domestic and external demand after the pandemic devastated the value of trade in Asia’s third-largest economy.

Global food trade has been upended by a container crisis

Food is piling up in all the wrong places, thanks to carriers hauling empty shipping containers. Global competition for the ribbed steel containers means that Thailand can’t ship its rice, Canada is stuck with peas and India can’t offload its mountain of sugar. Shipping empty boxes back to China have become so profitable that even some American soybean shippers are having to fight for containers to supply hungry Asian buyers.

India Lines Up Deepwater Port For Rice, Exports To Surge Amid Global Shortage

India's southern state of Andhra Pradesh will use a deepwater port to export rice for the first time in decades amid a global shortage of the grain, according to a government order seen by Reuters, which could raise shipments this year by a fifth. The order, issued late on Wednesday, allows Kakinada Deep Water Port to handle rice until more capacity is created at the adjoining Anchorage Port.