Other Briefings
IKEA Postpones Entry to India
Jun. 12 – Swedish company, IKEA, says it is postponing plans to open in India until the country allows full foreign ownership of single-brand retailers. Talks between the company and the Indian government to lift restrictions have fallen through and led to the cancellation of the US$1 billion plan to open 25 showrooms nationwide. “As […]
India May Rollback Service Tax to 12 Percent
Jun. 11 – The Indian government is considering a rollback of service tax to its previous level of 12 percent in the wake of rising state expenses and shrinking revenue. Last February, the service tax rate was lowered to 10 percent as part of the country’s third stimulus package. According to estimates, service tax collection […]
Infosys Wins US$355 Million Deal from Telstra
Jun. 10 – India’s top software services firm, Infosys Technologies, won an IT outsourcing contract worth US$355 million from Telstra Corp. along with U.S. firm and Hewlett-Packard unit, EDS. The company will provide the major Australian phone company’s application development and maintenance services in the next five years. U.S. technology firm IBM will also be […]
India Protests Fake Chinese Drugs Labeled “Made in India”
Jun. 9 – New Delhi has lodged a protest to the Chinese mission in Nigeria and China’s foreign trade ministry because of a large seizure of fake anti-malarial generic pharmaceuticals labeled “Made in India” were actually found to have been produced in China The findings were reported by the National Agency for Food and Drug […]
Gov’t Approves 10 New SEZs
Jun. 3 – The Indian government has approved 10 new Special Economic Zones (SEZ) while also allowing the extension of four projects, including Reliance Industries’ Mukesh Ambani- promoted Rewas Ports for land acquisition. Formal approvals were given to eight proposals, including those of Gulf Oil Corporation, Emmar MGF and Larsen and Toubro. This is in […]
India Reduces Custom Duties for 450 Items from Mercosur Countries
Jun. 2 – India has announced that it would reduce customs duties for importing 450 items by 10 to 100 percent from Mercosur countries following a preferential trade agreement with South American nations, according to the Central Board of Excise and Customs. The import duty concessions in the form of exemptions are set to be […]
India’s Manufacturing Expands for Second Month in a Row
Jun. 1 – A recent survey reported that manufacturing activity in India grew for the second straight month in May; the highest expansion in the last eight months. According to the Markit Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) activity increased by 55.7 in May from last April’s 53.3. The information is taken from a survey of 500 […]
Gov’t May Ease FDI Limits for Some Sectors
May 27 – The newly-appointed government may look into liberalizing the entry of foreign direct investment in certain sectors like defense production and insurance as well as implement reforms on civil aviation policy, according to an official. Currently, FDI is limited to 26 percent for both insurance and defense production. The UPA government in its […]
