Feb exports up 34%, import surge signals strong revival.

NEW DELHI: Exports went up in February 2010 for the fourth straight month to $16.09 billion, an impressive growth of 34.8%. Imports, too,maintained momentum growing by 66% to $25 billion underscoring the strong revival in the domestic economy.

The government, nonetheless, announced a fresh package of incentives for exporters of garments, engineering, electronics and agro products to select markets where demand for the products is yet to pick up.

The sops, which will be doled out from Thursday, will be available for six months and are expected to cost the government Rs 625 crore.

Director general of foreign trade (DGFT) RS Gujaral pointed out that despite exports showing a healthy growth in the past four months, for April-February 2009-10 period at $153 billion exports were still 11% lower over the same period in the previous fiscal.

India is expected to end the fiscal well below the $189 billion worth of exports carried out in 2008-09.

Sectors such as engineering goods, textiles, jute, carpets, handicrafts and leather are continuing to perform badly.

At a press conference on Wednesday Commerce Minister Anand Sharma pointed out that the growing import numbers was good news. “It shows that the economy is picking up,” he said.

In the April-February period, imports dropped 13.5% to $248 billion.

Exports had recorded a decline for thirteen months beginning October 2008 as a result of shrinking demand due to global economic slowdown.

Announcing the fresh stimulus measures for exporters, Mr Sharma said that there were sectors which needed continued support as their demand had not yet picked up in key markets.

The incentives will be extended as part of the market-linked focus product scheme under which exporters will be given duty free scrips (scrips which can be used to import goods duty free) worth 2% of the value of exports. The scrips can also be sold in the market.

Apparel exporters will get the benefit for the US market and 23 European countries while electronic goods exporters would get the sops for 15 countries including China, Australia and Newzealand. Exporters of agro products would get the benefit for Nigeria, Algeria and Mexico.

Source : The Economic Times