FIEO demands clarity over refund rates as exports hit record high

With the latest trade data showing India’s merchandise export surge by over 58% in March to 34 billion from 21.49 billion in March 2020, Indian exporters have demanded the government to urgently clear the uncertainty over the rates for refund of duties and taxes incurred by them on exported goods, writes ETV Bharat Deputy News Editor Krishnanand Tripathi.

New Delhi: Indian exporters demanded the government to urgently notify the rates for refund of duties and taxes, known as the RoDTEP, incurred by them on exported goods, saying that removal of uncertainty over the RoDTEP rates will help them to maintain the growth momentum as the country's merchandise trade hit a record high of $34 billion last month.

Latest trade data released Thursday evening showed that India’s merchandise export surged by over 58% in March to 34 billion from 21.49 billion in March 2020.

According to an analyses of the trade data, 28 of the 30 major product groups either registered a very sharp triple digit growth or high double digit growth in export during March.

Sharad Kumar Saraf, President of Indian Export Organisations , says the surge in export in the last month shows revival in the overall economy and not just in exports.

The sudden surge in March export, which comes on the back of two important developments, roll out of the world’s largest vaccination drive at a time when the country is witnessing a second wave of Corona infections as the country reported 498 deaths and more than 80,000 new cases on April 1.

Notify RoDTEP rates: FIEO

Exporters said the government should urgently notify the RoDTEP rates to maintain the momentum as removal of uncertainty over the duty refund rates is important before they can finalise new contracts with foreign buyers.

The Remission of Duties and Taxes on Export Products (RoDTEP) scheme was implemented in January this year to support the country’s export, which was hit hard by the outbreak of Covid-19 global pandemic.

On Thursday, the ministry of commerce and industries extended the trade policy for another six months, till September 2021, but did not notify the RoDTEP rates.

“The government must address some of the key issues including announcement of the new FTP soon after September 2021, adequate availability of containers, release of the required funds for RoDTEP,” said Saraf.

Exporters seek more funds for MEIS, SEIS schemes

The industry lobby group also demanded sufficient allocation for two other schemes Merchandise Export from India Scheme (MEIS), Service Export from India Scheme (SEIS), which have been designed to provide rewards to exporters to offset infrastructural inefficiencies and associated costs.

In an earlier interaction with ETV Bharat, Saraf had raised the issue of high freight charges and lack of availability of enough containers that has impeded the export potential.

Saraf also urged the government to resolve the issues faced by risky exporters and sought continuation of seamless refund of the Integrated GST (IGST).

Exporters also demanded creation of a special Export Development Fund (EDF) for marketing of made in India products and removal of other bottlenecks to achieve double digit growth in the export sector.