Timothy DavisThe present NDA government has a vision of making India a $5 trillion economy by 2024. To achieve this target, the country’s GDP (gross domestic product) will have to grow at a steady and strong pace.
Currently, India runs a negative trade balance, that is its total imports are larger its total exports. According to World Bank’s statistics, the country’s exports of both good and services is 19.05 percent of GDP while imports are 22.03 percent.
It fill the gap, that could also help strengthen the economy, the government has taken several initiatives over the years including the incentives announced by the finance ministry for exporters, last week. The measures include Dubai-like shopping festivals, implementation of technology to digitalise export-related procedure, creating awareness to become competitive in the global market, among other things.
If you are also looking to start your export business to harness the opportunities in this area, here are some ideas:
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1. Coffee
As of 2009, Indian coffee made up for 4.5 percent of the world’s production and 80 percent of this produce is exported.
While Italy makes for 29 percent of the coffee exports made, Germany, Russia, Spain, Belgium, Slovenia, United States, Japan, Greece, Netherlands and France also buy Indian coffee for its fine quality.
2. Handicrafts
India has a large number of artisans who make decorative items by hand or using hand-held tools. These are high in demand but lack the exposure to the global market.
With the correct use of e-commerce websites like Amazon, Alibaba, Etsy and more, one can get these listed to be seen and bought by customers overseas.
3. Sugar
India majorly exports sugar to Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Somalia and Iran. The sugar mills in the country are well supported by the government. If you get yourself registered with DGFT (Directorate General of Foreign Trade), exporting sugar is free.
4. Cotton Yarn
Cotton yarn used to make clothes is also an important export made from India. The country is the second largest producer of cotton yarn fabric in the world and has considerable demand in the West, China and also Japan.
5. Other natural products
India’s exports are predominately agricultural like spices, tea, tobacco and also animal products like milk. While most are concentrated by large players, you can also start your own business to support local and small producers.
What do you need to start an import/export business in India?
You need to be sure of the resources you have to start any business before you decide to start one. Once that is sorted, it is recommended to open a sole proprietorship, atleast at the initially stages of your business to simplify legal procedures.
- Get your business registered for Service Tax or VAT with an attractive logo and name.
- It is also mandatory to get a PAN for the business for income tax purposes.
- Open a current account at a bank of your choice to maintain working capital to run your day-to-day business.
- Get Import Export Code (IEC) registration done.
- Obtain Registration cum Membership Certificate (RCMC), which is granted by the concerned Export Promotion Councils. It provides you the authorisation to import or export, or to avail other related benefits.
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