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30 p.c. sourcing from Indian MSEs, insists Minister
- Anand Sharma on Monday asserted that 30 per cent sourcing under FDI in multi-brand retail has been made mandatory from Indian MSEs only.
- However, Mr. Sharma's assertion is in total contrast to the official note issued last week, which stated that the 30 per cent sourcing by global retailers can be done from anywhere in the world and is not India-specific. This provision for procurement from small units will not violate the WTO obligations.
- Small enterprises had raised concerns over the clause of 30 per cent sourcing from MSEs anywhere in the world, saying this may help the cheap Chinese goods rather than Indians in view of cheaper labour in the neighbouring country.
- However, officials in the Industry Ministry continued to maintain that restricting sourcing of 30 per cent only to India would violate WTO norms.
Rupee depreciation will have impact on imports: Rangarajan
- Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council Chairman C. Rangarajan expects inflation to moderate to 7 per cent by the end of the current fiscal.
- The movement in global commodity prices had bigger implications and the impact was expected to be more on India which was importing a major chunk of its crude oil requirement.
- He exhorted banks to piggyback on the mobile telephony platform, with 700 million mobile connections in place, to achieve financial inclusion.
