" Indian MSMEs are once again feeling the heat of slow economic growth. Not only has the demand slackened but more importantly their payments are also delayed resulting in cash crunch. Due to a narrow and rigid NPA definition, even if the assets quality of the MSMEs remains the same, just the liquidity crunch has led to their accounts being categorized as NPAs. It’s time an NPA defined more pragmatically to balance the interests of both the banks and the MSMEs. "
A delegation of Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI) led by its President Zubair Ahmed Malik held discussions with FISME office bearers on identifying an agenda of close economic cooperation between SMEs of both the countries. Besides the President Malik, the Pakistani delegation comprised of two Vice Presidents: Gulzar Firoz and Rukhsana Jahangir Khokhar and Chairman of the Fairs and Exhibitions Nasir ud din Sheikh.
Firstly, a 19 member FISME delegation is set to visit Pakistan in Dec 2013 as soon as a clearance is granted by the interior Ministry. It would be followed by a delegation from FKCCI to India.
A National Conference on ‘Accelerating Technology Innovation for Inclusive and Sustainable Growth,’ was organised by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR) and National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council (NMCC) on 7th November in New Delhi with Federation of Indian Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (FISME) as a partner institution.
Held at Vigyan Bhawan, the Conference was inaugurated by the Union Minister for Science and Technology S Jaipal Reddy and was addressed by Secretary DSIR and DG CSIR Samir K Brahmachari, Chairman and Managing Director BHEL, B P Rao, Member – National Innovation Council, Kiran Karnik, Professor IIT Madras, Ashok Jhunjhunwala and Secretary MSME, Madhav Lal among others.
With a view to continuously improve the eco-system for development and growth of the MSME sector, to facilitate member MSMEs’ access to inputs and also their access to markets, FISME’s institutional set-up provides for Subject Committees.
There are seven subject specific committees. The Committees are encouraged to plan their own agenda of activities within the overall framework of FISME. President FISME and Secretary General are permanent invitees to all committee meetings. A senior official is designated from the Secretariat who acts as Secretary to the Committees.
A study carried out by FISME on extent of implementation of RBI instructions rehabilitation of sick MSEs by 9 large public sector Bank shows banks are not showing much interest in handholding of the MSE to sort out the difficulties at the early signs of sickness.
RBI guidelines dated 1st November 2012 mentions that the recent global slowdown has adversely impacted, more specifically, the Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) and identification of sickness in MSE enterprises is done so late that the possibilities of revival recede. Towards proactively supporting the MSEs, RBI has stipulated a ‘Handholding Stage’ when the bank branches should take timely remedial action which includes an enquiry into the operations of the unit, providing guidance/counselling services, timely financial assistance as per established need and also helping the unit in sorting out difficulties which are non-financial in nature or requiring assistance from other agencies.
But the FISME study on leading Banks show the Banks are not even compiling data about MSE accounts provided handholding and the results of the same. This clearly indicates the importance, or otherwise, given by the Banks to the crucial RBI guidance on addressing the sickness of the MSEs proactively.
- Emil Motycka, Managing Member at Motycka Enterprises
You’re not going to make a fortune in a night. You probably won’t even make a fortune in a year. You might make a few thousand though and after organically growing, eventually hit the six figure mark. For Emil Motycka, it took him about 16 years to have the empire he has now. 25-year old, Emil is the founder of Emil’s Lawns and started out selling golf balls when he was eight-years-old. His story showcases a slow, organic business growth from mowing his friends’ and families’ lawn to taking out a loan for his own truck at 13 to then buying out neighboring companies while he was in business school. If you think about it, it’s pretty textbook stuff that devoid of all the bells and whistles. If you start out sprinting towards dollar signs, more than likely you’re going to trip yourself before you get your feet off the ground. As Aesop Fables would tell you, “slow and steady wins the race.” How many business horror stories have involved the company that got too big too fast and inevitably imploded? That can be avoided by really finding your footing as a company and literally building your business brick by brick.
[Adapted from How to beat the odds : Lessons from young startup Entrepreneurs, Whiskers]
India badly needs second generation reforms...
without second-generation reforms and a drastic overhaul
of its institutions, India is condemned to mediocre income and growth
[Lead Article in Business Toady by its Editor, Chaitanya Kalbag ]
In the past few weeks, there have been some noteworthy developments. The Finance Minister and the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers to the Prime Minister have both independently, and vigorously, protested that IMF’s downgrade of India’s growth forecast is inaccurate. India will grow much faster than the IMF predicts, they argue. In fact, the IMF has been generous with India’s growth forecast of 3.75 per cent. World Bank data, computed on a purchasing power parity basis, shows that actual growth for the year ending 2012 was 3.2 per cent.
Consignment for export could be cleared in hours, the Finance Ministry has claimed. At present, it takes up to 4 days.
To facilitate exports, the Finance Minister, P. Chidambaram, launched the All India Risk Management System for export on Wednesday. Earlier, this system was introduced in December 2005 for imports.
“I sincerely hope that with the introduction of RMS in exports, the dwell time which now ranges from 1.6 days to 3.68 days will be brought down to a few hours,” Chidambaram told reporters after launching the new system.
The primary objective of this system is to strike an optimal balance between facilitation and enforcement and to promote a culture of compliance.
A surge in wholesale inflation, coupled with a sustained rise in retail inflation, has raised the possibility of another interest rate hike by the Reserve Bank of India. The core inflation (reflecting mainly prices of manufacturing goods) also rose to 2.6 per cent in October from 2.1 per cent in September.
On Thursday, the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) for October rose to 7 per cent from 6.46 per cent in September. Though this is an eight-month-high, it is lower than in October last year, when it was 7.32 per cent. On Tuesday, the retail inflation, represented by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), had risen to 10.09 per cent in October from 9.84 per cent in September.
Finance Minister, P. Chidambaram, today said economic growth will revive in the second half of the current financial year.
He said the measures taken by the Government will yield results and help India achieve potential growth rate of 8 per cent.
Stating that the Government will not exceed the red line on fiscal deficit in 2013-14, he added that current account deficit will be contained at under $56 billion in 2013-14.
On new bank licences, he said they will be given in January.
Considering that every business unit, big or small needs to understand how to exploit digital marketing tools and techniques to improve customer value proposition and overall competitiveness, a two day course will be held here on November-23 and 24.Organised by the MSME Technology Development Centre under the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, the certificate course will cover digital marketing (also referred to as online marketing, internet marketing or web marketing), content management system and website creation among others.There will also be hands on workshop on the Live CMS system, Email Campaigns, Web Analytics- Demo, Exercise - Connecting Landing Page, Analytics, and CMS, Search Engine Optimization and Marketing, SEO, and how to leverage social media.
Presenting an overview on the different opportunities in the export business of casting, forgings and engineering components, the Ministry of MSME is organising a two day programme on export documentation and procedure.
The programme starting November-23 will be organised in the national capital region of Faridabad by the MSME Technology Development Centre.
Export business also known as international trading, requires special documentation depending upon the type of product and destination to be exported from India.
India's exports rose by 13.7 per cent to USD 27.27 billion in October, while the imports fell by 14.5 per cent to USD 37.82 billion, narrowing the trade deficit of the country to USD 10.56 billion. During the same period last year, the trade deficit was at USD 20.2 billion.
"This is a consistent growth in exports. The US is doing extremely well and Europe is also doing well," Commerce Secretary S R Rao told reporters here. According to data released, the value of merchandise exports in October was USD 27.27 billion, as compared to USD 24.03 billion recorded in the same month last year, registering a year-on-year growth of 13.47 per cent.
Several industries, including those from the small scale sector have contributed to the successful launch of India's Mars Mission which has done the country proud, Director General of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) Samir K Brahmachari has said.
“Many industries including small industries have provided components. It is an extra ordinary co-ordinated effort, hundreds of people, thousands of researchers have participated,” he said here, addressing the National Conference on Accelerating Technology Innovation for Inclusive and Sustainable Growth. The conference was jointly organized by Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR) and National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council (NMCC).
In a move which will give relief to traders, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has allowed third party payments for export/import transactions subject to certain conditions.
“With a view to further liberalising the procedure relating to payments for exports/imports and taking into account evolving international trade practices,…AD (Authorised Dealer) banks may allow payments for export of goods / software to be received from a third party (a party other than the buyer) subject to conditions,” RBI said in a notification.
Indian micro small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are a diverse and heterogeneous group. But they face several common ecosystem-related problems.
Some of these are: a multiplicity of labour laws; inadequate infrastructure facilities; problems in procurement of raw materials at a competitive cost; supply to government departments and agencies; lack of access to modern technology; lack of skilled manpower; and, perhaps most important of all, the issue of timely availability of finance at the right cost.
The timely availability of finance and payments are key expectations of an MSME from banks and customers.
Just when India's exports are showing a much-needed turnaround, shipments at Nhava Sheva port terminals remain crippled as operators are resorting to go-slow after almost a two-week strike.
Seeking immediate intervention from the Shipping Ministry, EEPC India Chairman Anupam Shah said, “Even though the Nhava Sheva ICT operators have called off the strike, GTI terminal operators continued their Go Slow and the situation has become worse because of inventory and rollover…”
In order to cut down on time taken for custom clearance of export consignments from a few days to just a few hours, the government has implemented a risk management system (RMS).
“RMS is a trust based IT system that expects the trade to make correct declarations to Customs,” said Finance Minister P Chidambaram while inaugurating the system.
“It is a trade facilitation measure which, on implementation, would reduce dwell time from few days to few hours. In view of its obvious advantages, RMS is also being endorsed globally at all forums including WTO,” he added.
The Jammu and Kashmir government would be imparting skills development training to over nine lakh youth in the state during the 12th Five Year Plan period.
The programme will be initiated under the state’s skill development mission to ensure that more youth get jobs in both public and private sector firms within the country.
"Our training programmes should be reflective of the requirements in the job market. Steps should be taken to devise an inbuilt mechanism in the course curriculum itself to ensure market-oriented skill training to the youth," Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said at a meeting in Jammu yesterday.
As many as 14 states are represented at the Hubli Handloom Expo that is currently showcasing traditional silks indigenous to those regions.
The four day expo that is being held here from November-7 to 10 was organised to help individual weavers and representatives of weavers’ societies get better prices for their products, said The Hindu.
There are about 50 stalls in total selling both ethnic and contemporary designs. Both in the form of running fabric and saris, the handloom material is made of cotton, silk and a mix of both.
India's biggest cycle manufacturers hub, Ludhiana is facing more than Rs 500 crore loss per year due to massive imports from China, higher tax regimes and crisis of skilled labourers.
“As many as 2 to 2.5 lakh bicycles are being imported per month from China,” said Proprietor of R & R Bikes, Rajeev Jain who is also the General Secretary of United Cycle & Parts Manufacturers Association (UCPMA).
Approximately 40,000 - 50,000 cycles are manufactured per day are in Ludhiana alone. The city was home to over 1,500 factories making bicycles and components, providing employment to 0.25 million people.
Thousands of artisans are currently displaying their unique ethnic wares at the most colourful and only one of its kind in the world, the Pushkar Fair.
Each year, the fair attracts thousands of rural folk, who bring their cattle and camel for several days of livestock trading that is combined with a religious festival that attracts both domestic and international visitors. The Pushkar Fair is being held here from November 9-17 this year.
During the event each year, the town is transformed into a cultural phenomenon featuring colourfully dressed devotees, musicians, acrobats, folk dancers, traders, comedians, and tourists who assemble in large numbers, according to an official notification.
In order to provide a boost to rice production, the West Bengal government has announced cash subsidy for setting up rice mills in 165 blocks within the state.
State Finance Minister Amit Mitra told the media that the government will provide Rs 80 lakh for every rice mill set up in a block in the Junglemahal area while the amount for other blocks is Rs 55 lakh.
There are around 1,018 rice mills in West Bengal but not every block has a rice mill. There are 165 blocks where rice is grown but these do not have even one rice mill. So, we will set up mills in these blocks, Mitra said.
Belgium today asked India to open up more sectors, including defence, to FDI saying the present status was not enough to attract large investments.
"This government has made quite a substantial effort to open up various sectors but there is a long way to go. If you ask me if I am satisfied, I would say no," Belgian Ambassador to India Pierre Vaesen told PTI when asked about his views on India's recent opening up of FDI in many sectors.
The amount comprises funds due for works completed under Bhutan's 10th five-year plan
India will provide funds worth Rs 1.5 billion to Bhutan for various development works.
Bhutan's economic body Gross National Happiness Commission, yesterday signed 10 cheques amounting to Rs 1.5 billion with Indian government officials.
This leaves another Rs 1.5 billion to be received from India under the 10th plan covering around 95% of the total commitment made under the plan, according to a release from the commission.
In a bid to strengthen the strategic and global partnership between the two countries, Japan today committed to an amount of Yen 30.703 billion (Rs 1958.85 crore) for the first batch of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) loan package to India for two projects.
The notes in this regard were exchanged here between Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Rajesh Khullar and Ambassador of Japan to India Takeshi Yagi.
This, while the Japanese government is still scrambling to bring the Tepco crisis under control
The government is steadily accelerating negotiations with Japan on civil nuclear cooperation.
The previous round of formal negotiations was on November 7-8. This was only a couple of weeks after a massive earthquake struck Japan’s east coast; a tsunami advisory was issued for the Fukushima area, where there was a notorious accident, in the wake of a quake, in early 2011.
Date: 17-25 November 2013 Venue: New Delhi See Details
FISME delegation to Metalex 2013-November 2013
Date: 19-23 November 2013 Venue: Bangkok See Details
FISME delegation to Pakistan
Date: 25 Nov to 30 Nov 2013 Venue: Karachi and Lahore See Details
Sourcing Exhibition in India by Hannover Milano
Date: 17th – 20th December 2013 Venue: Pragati Maidan, New Delhi See Details
" If you have the privilege of being a leader in any sphere of life you must have a way to turn inwards and fix your experience of life.... We want leaders who will do what is needed (of them), not what they need "
- Sadghuru Jaggi Vasudev
Real News of Real Sector, the MSME Sector!
Share your concerns, news, views and success stories
According to the FISME Factor, 63 per cent of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), think that the efforts being made by the Govt to revive the economy are not adequate.
The subject of corporate governance leapt to limelight from relative obscurity after a string of collapses of high profile companies at the start of this century, when events at a Houston-based energy giant and at a global telecom behemoth in Mississippi, shocked the business world with both the scale and age of their unethical and illegal operations. Worse, they seemed to indicate only the tip of a dangerous iceberg. While corporate practices in the USA came under the scanner, it appeared that the problem was far more widespread.
What you need to know while raising funds for your start-up
After that one big idea, which is the raison d'etre of your start-up, there's another big concern that you need to tackle sooner or later. And that's finding the juice that will run your venture. In plain and simple terms, I am referring to the 'F' word -- funding. I have been an angel investor for 15 years and, over the last few years, have worked with a large number of angels. I have screened over 3,000 business plans and attended countless guru sessions on start-ups.
It's that time of the year again, when Goddess Lakshmi descends from her heavenly abode and we light up our hearts and homes to welcome her. As a small business owner, your team waits all year round to make the most of the festive season to boost your sales. Purchases and orders are at a maximum before Diwali, and you've likely put in your best effort to attract customers with special offers and festive packages.
Small cable operators hurt in digitization process
Small scale cable operators who are involved in installing Digital Address System (DAS) as part of Phase III in all urban areas are experiencing difficulties owing to the lengthy process of setting up a digital head, delay in obtaining licence for project registration and other such norms.
A reluctant teenage entrepreneur makes a 'safe' bet
Like many teenagers growing up in Mumbai, Dr Diwan Rahul Nanda too dreamt of making it big in Bollywood. But fate had other plans. Just when he turned 16, his father suffered a paralytic stroke and he had to take over the ailing restaurant business, Tutkuks. After turning it around, at age 22, Dr Nanda then took up the challenge to resurrect the ailing security business of his family – Topsgrup
Why would an apparel retail professional with a textiles degree raise a mug of beer and say cheers? "Destiny is not a matter of chance; it's a choice. It took 20 years of working with lifestyle and sportswear companies to realise that I was destined to become an entrepreneur. By chance, I met another professional-turned-entrepreneur who came from the world of beer.
The Quick Estimates of Index of Industrial Production, the lead indicator of industrial production trends in the registered factory sector, for the month of August 2013, were released by the Govt. of India. The General Index is 0.6% higher as compared to the level in the month of August 2012.
" First, dream and dream big, because today there are no constraints to what you can do… the world has changed, and if you set your mind to anything, you can do it. Second, there is no substitute for hard work. Don’t think it will fall into your lap. Dream, but back it up with enormous amount of hard work. You do the two, there is music to be made. "
Buy our one-of-a-kind guide to all industrial testing laboratories in India. Find the one most convenient for getting your products tested and certified. An invaluable compendium for all industrial units and exporters.
PP: 894, Hard Cover.
Price: Rs 900.
50% discount for members.
If you are an exporter you simply cannot do without this unique publication which tells you how to manage payment and other risks arising from exports.
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Price: Rs 300.
50% discount for members.
FISME regularly receives monthly reports on the economies of various countries from their missions in India. These reports provide information on key economic parameters, trade related information and all news relevant for importers and exporters. In this edition you can take a look at reports on:
Write your comments on the FISME Factor. Share your views and suggestions on MSME issues. Win prize! The best mail will get a special book every fortnight.
send mail to: newsletter@fisme.org.in
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" Indian MSMEs are once again feeling the heat of slow economic growth. Not only has the demand slackened but more importantly their payments are also delayed resulting in cash crunch. Due to a narrow and rigid NPA definition, even if the assets quality of the MSMEs remains the same, just the liquidity crunch has led to their accounts being categorized as NPAs. It’s time an NPA defined more pragmatically to balance the interests of both the banks and the MSMEs. "
A delegation of Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI) led by its President Zubair Ahmed Malik held discussions with FISME office bearers on identifying an agenda of close economic cooperation between SMEs of both the countries. Besides the President Malik, the Pakistani delegation comprised of two Vice Presidents: Gulzar Firoz and Rukhsana Jahangir Khokhar and Chairman of the Fairs and Exhibitions Nasir ud din Sheikh.
Firstly, a 19 member FISME delegation is set to visit Pakistan in Dec 2013 as soon as a clearance is granted by the interior Ministry. It would be followed by a delegation from FKCCI to India.
A National Conference on ‘Accelerating Technology Innovation for Inclusive and Sustainable Growth,’ was organised by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR) and National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council (NMCC) on 7th November in New Delhi with Federation of Indian Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (FISME) as a partner institution.
Held at Vigyan Bhawan, the Conference was inaugurated by the Union Minister for Science and Technology S Jaipal Reddy and was addressed by Secretary DSIR and DG CSIR Samir K Brahmachari, Chairman and Managing Director BHEL, B P Rao, Member – National Innovation Council, Kiran Karnik, Professor IIT Madras, Ashok Jhunjhunwala and Secretary MSME, Madhav Lal among others.
With a view to continuously improve the eco-system for development and growth of the MSME sector, to facilitate member MSMEs’ access to inputs and also their access to markets, FISME’s institutional set-up provides for Subject Committees.
There are seven subject specific committees. The Committees are encouraged to plan their own agenda of activities within the overall framework of FISME. President FISME and Secretary General are permanent invitees to all committee meetings. A senior official is designated from the Secretariat who acts as Secretary to the Committees.
A study carried out by FISME on extent of implementation of RBI instructions rehabilitation of sick MSEs by 9 large public sector Bank shows banks are not showing much interest in handholding of the MSE to sort out the difficulties at the early signs of sickness.
RBI guidelines dated 1st November 2012 mentions that the recent global slowdown has adversely impacted, more specifically, the Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) and identification of sickness in MSE enterprises is done so late that the possibilities of revival recede. Towards proactively supporting the MSEs, RBI has stipulated a ‘Handholding Stage’ when the bank branches should take timely remedial action which includes an enquiry into the operations of the unit, providing guidance/counselling services, timely financial assistance as per established need and also helping the unit in sorting out difficulties which are non-financial in nature or requiring assistance from other agencies.
But the FISME study on leading Banks show the Banks are not even compiling data about MSE accounts provided handholding and the results of the same. This clearly indicates the importance, or otherwise, given by the Banks to the crucial RBI guidance on addressing the sickness of the MSEs proactively.
You’re not going to make a fortune in a night. You probably won’t even make a fortune in a year. You might make a few thousand though and after organically growing, eventually hit the six figure mark. For Emil Motycka, it took him about 16 years to have the empire he has now. 25-year old, Emil is the founder of Emil’s Lawns and started out selling golf balls when he was eight-years-old. His story showcases a slow, organic business growth from mowing his friends’ and families’ lawn to taking out a loan for his own truck at 13 to then buying out neighboring companies while he was in business school. If you think about it, it’s pretty textbook stuff that devoid of all the bells and whistles. If you start out sprinting towards dollar signs, more than likely you’re going to trip yourself before you get your feet off the ground. As Aesop Fables would tell you, “slow and steady wins the race.” How many business horror stories have involved the company that got too big too fast and inevitably imploded? That can be avoided by really finding your footing as a company and literally building your business brick by brick.
India badly needs second generation reforms...
without second-generation reforms and a drastic overhaul
of its institutions, India is condemned to mediocre income and growth
In the past few weeks, there have been some noteworthy developments. The Finance Minister and the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers to the Prime Minister have both independently, and vigorously, protested that IMF’s downgrade of India’s growth forecast is inaccurate. India will grow much faster than the IMF predicts, they argue. In fact, the IMF has been generous with India’s growth forecast of 3.75 per cent. World Bank data, computed on a purchasing power parity basis, shows that actual growth for the year ending 2012 was 3.2 per cent.
A surge in wholesale inflation, coupled with a sustained rise in retail inflation, has raised the possibility of another interest rate hike by the Reserve Bank of India. The core inflation (reflecting mainly prices of manufacturing goods) also rose to 2.6 per cent in October from 2.1 per cent in September.
On Thursday, the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) for October rose to 7 per cent from 6.46 per cent in September. Though this is an eight-month-high, it is lower than in October last year, when it was 7.32 per cent. On Tuesday, the retail inflation, represented by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), had risen to 10.09 per cent in October from 9.84 per cent in September.
Finance Minister, P. Chidambaram, today said economic growth will revive in the second half of the current financial year.
He said the measures taken by the Government will yield results and help India achieve potential growth rate of 8 per cent.
Stating that the Government will not exceed the red line on fiscal deficit in 2013-14, he added that current account deficit will be contained at under $56 billion in 2013-14.
On new bank licences, he said they will be given in January.
Considering that every business unit, big or small needs to understand how to exploit digital marketing tools and techniques to improve customer value proposition and overall competitiveness, a two day course will be held here on November-23 and 24.Organised by the MSME Technology Development Centre under the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, the certificate course will cover digital marketing (also referred to as online marketing, internet marketing or web marketing), content management system and website creation among others.There will also be hands on workshop on the Live CMS system, Email Campaigns, Web Analytics- Demo, Exercise - Connecting Landing Page, Analytics, and CMS, Search Engine Optimization and Marketing, SEO, and how to leverage social media.
Presenting an overview on the different opportunities in the export business of casting, forgings and engineering components, the Ministry of MSME is organising a two day programme on export documentation and procedure.
The programme starting November-23 will be organised in the national capital region of Faridabad by the MSME Technology Development Centre.
Export business also known as international trading, requires special documentation depending upon the type of product and destination to be exported from India.
India's exports rose by 13.7 per cent to USD 27.27 billion in October, while the imports fell by 14.5 per cent to USD 37.82 billion, narrowing the trade deficit of the country to USD 10.56 billion. During the same period last year, the trade deficit was at USD 20.2 billion.
"This is a consistent growth in exports. The US is doing extremely well and Europe is also doing well," Commerce Secretary S R Rao told reporters here. According to data released, the value of merchandise exports in October was USD 27.27 billion, as compared to USD 24.03 billion recorded in the same month last year, registering a year-on-year growth of 13.47 per cent.
In a move which will give relief to traders, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has allowed third party payments for export/import transactions subject to certain conditions.
“With a view to further liberalising the procedure relating to payments for exports/imports and taking into account evolving international trade practices,…AD (Authorised Dealer) banks may allow payments for export of goods / software to be received from a third party (a party other than the buyer) subject to conditions,” RBI said in a notification.
Indian micro small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are a diverse and heterogeneous group. But they face several common ecosystem-related problems.
Some of these are: a multiplicity of labour laws; inadequate infrastructure facilities; problems in procurement of raw materials at a competitive cost; supply to government departments and agencies; lack of access to modern technology; lack of skilled manpower; and, perhaps most important of all, the issue of timely availability of finance at the right cost.
The timely availability of finance and payments are key expectations of an MSME from banks and customers.
Just when India's exports are showing a much-needed turnaround, shipments at Nhava Sheva port terminals remain crippled as operators are resorting to go-slow after almost a two-week strike.
Seeking immediate intervention from the Shipping Ministry, EEPC India Chairman Anupam Shah said, “Even though the Nhava Sheva ICT operators have called off the strike, GTI terminal operators continued their Go Slow and the situation has become worse because of inventory and rollover…”
In order to cut down on time taken for custom clearance of export consignments from a few days to just a few hours, the government has implemented a risk management system (RMS).
“RMS is a trust based IT system that expects the trade to make correct declarations to Customs,” said Finance Minister P Chidambaram while inaugurating the system.
“It is a trade facilitation measure which, on implementation, would reduce dwell time from few days to few hours. In view of its obvious advantages, RMS is also being endorsed globally at all forums including WTO,” he added.
The Jammu and Kashmir government would be imparting skills development training to over nine lakh youth in the state during the 12th Five Year Plan period.
The programme will be initiated under the state’s skill development mission to ensure that more youth get jobs in both public and private sector firms within the country.
"Our training programmes should be reflective of the requirements in the job market. Steps should be taken to devise an inbuilt mechanism in the course curriculum itself to ensure market-oriented skill training to the youth," Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said at a meeting in Jammu yesterday.
As many as 14 states are represented at the Hubli Handloom Expo that is currently showcasing traditional silks indigenous to those regions.
The four day expo that is being held here from November-7 to 10 was organised to help individual weavers and representatives of weavers’ societies get better prices for their products, said The Hindu.
There are about 50 stalls in total selling both ethnic and contemporary designs. Both in the form of running fabric and saris, the handloom material is made of cotton, silk and a mix of both.
India's biggest cycle manufacturers hub, Ludhiana is facing more than Rs 500 crore loss per year due to massive imports from China, higher tax regimes and crisis of skilled labourers.
“As many as 2 to 2.5 lakh bicycles are being imported per month from China,” said Proprietor of R & R Bikes, Rajeev Jain who is also the General Secretary of United Cycle & Parts Manufacturers Association (UCPMA).
Approximately 40,000 - 50,000 cycles are manufactured per day are in Ludhiana alone. The city was home to over 1,500 factories making bicycles and components, providing employment to 0.25 million people.
Thousands of artisans are currently displaying their unique ethnic wares at the most colourful and only one of its kind in the world, the Pushkar Fair.
Each year, the fair attracts thousands of rural folk, who bring their cattle and camel for several days of livestock trading that is combined with a religious festival that attracts both domestic and international visitors. The Pushkar Fair is being held here from November 9-17 this year.
During the event each year, the town is transformed into a cultural phenomenon featuring colourfully dressed devotees, musicians, acrobats, folk dancers, traders, comedians, and tourists who assemble in large numbers, according to an official notification.
In order to provide a boost to rice production, the West Bengal government has announced cash subsidy for setting up rice mills in 165 blocks within the state.
State Finance Minister Amit Mitra told the media that the government will provide Rs 80 lakh for every rice mill set up in a block in the Junglemahal area while the amount for other blocks is Rs 55 lakh.
There are around 1,018 rice mills in West Bengal but not every block has a rice mill. There are 165 blocks where rice is grown but these do not have even one rice mill. So, we will set up mills in these blocks, Mitra said.
Belgium today asked India to open up more sectors, including defence, to FDI saying the present status was not enough to attract large investments.
"This government has made quite a substantial effort to open up various sectors but there is a long way to go. If you ask me if I am satisfied, I would say no," Belgian Ambassador to India Pierre Vaesen told PTI when asked about his views on India's recent opening up of FDI in many sectors.
The amount comprises funds due for works completed under Bhutan's 10th five-year plan
India will provide funds worth Rs 1.5 billion to Bhutan for various development works.
Bhutan's economic body Gross National Happiness Commission, yesterday signed 10 cheques amounting to Rs 1.5 billion with Indian government officials.
This leaves another Rs 1.5 billion to be received from India under the 10th plan covering around 95% of the total commitment made under the plan, according to a release from the commission.
In a bid to strengthen the strategic and global partnership between the two countries, Japan today committed to an amount of Yen 30.703 billion (Rs 1958.85 crore) for the first batch of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) loan package to India for two projects.
The notes in this regard were exchanged here between Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Rajesh Khullar and Ambassador of Japan to India Takeshi Yagi.
This, while the Japanese government is still scrambling to bring the Tepco crisis under control
The government is steadily accelerating negotiations with Japan on civil nuclear cooperation.
The previous round of formal negotiations was on November 7-8. This was only a couple of weeks after a massive earthquake struck Japan’s east coast; a tsunami advisory was issued for the Fukushima area, where there was a notorious accident, in the wake of a quake, in early 2011.
According to the FISME Factor, 63 per cent of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), think that the efforts being made by the Govt to revive the economy are not adequate.
The subject of corporate governance leapt to limelight from relative obscurity after a string of collapses of high profile companies at the start of this century, when events at a Houston-based energy giant and at a global telecom behemoth in Mississippi, shocked the business world with both the scale and age of their unethical and illegal operations. Worse, they seemed to indicate only the tip of a dangerous iceberg. While corporate practices in the USA came under the scanner, it appeared that the problem was far more widespread.
After that one big idea, which is the raison d'etre of your start-up, there's another big concern that you need to tackle sooner or later. And that's finding the juice that will run your venture. In plain and simple terms, I am referring to the 'F' word -- funding. I have been an angel investor for 15 years and, over the last few years, have worked with a large number of angels. I have screened over 3,000 business plans and attended countless guru sessions on start-ups.
It's that time of the year again, when Goddess Lakshmi descends from her heavenly abode and we light up our hearts and homes to welcome her. As a small business owner, your team waits all year round to make the most of the festive season to boost your sales. Purchases and orders are at a maximum before Diwali, and you've likely put in your best effort to attract customers with special offers and festive packages.
Small scale cable operators who are involved in installing Digital Address System (DAS) as part of Phase III in all urban areas are experiencing difficulties owing to the lengthy process of setting up a digital head, delay in obtaining licence for project registration and other such norms.
Like many teenagers growing up in Mumbai, Dr Diwan Rahul Nanda too dreamt of making it big in Bollywood. But fate had other plans. Just when he turned 16, his father suffered a paralytic stroke and he had to take over the ailing restaurant business, Tutkuks. After turning it around, at age 22, Dr Nanda then took up the challenge to resurrect the ailing security business of his family – Topsgrup
" First, dream and dream big, because today there are no constraints to what you can do… the world has changed, and if you set your mind to anything, you can do it. Second, there is no substitute for hard work. Don’t think it will fall into your lap. Dream, but back it up with enormous amount of hard work. You do the two, there is music to be made. " 
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