“India’s exports will touch an all-time high of $330 billion this year surpassing the earlier peak of $314 billion recorded in 2013-14,” said Anup Wadhawan, Commerce Secretary.

Speaking at the eighth edition of International Engineering Sourcing Show (IESS VIII) here on Thursday, organised by EEPC India with Malaysia as a partner country, Wadhawan said, the engineering sector achieved a record level of exports at $76.2 billion in 2017-18 despite increasing sentiment of trade protectionism across the globe.

Releasing the ‘EEPC India strategy paper for growth of engineering exports’, Wadhawan said, EEPC has set an ambitious export target of $200 billion of engineering products by 2025 from the current $80 billion.

The Commerce Secretary also urged exporters to make better use of India’s Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with various countries to enhance their market presence globally.

“We have carried out a number of trade facilitation measures. But our data shows that Indian exporters have not been very good users of FTA preferential benefits from partnering countries,” Wadhawan added.

Speaking at the event, Dharmendra Pratap Yadav, Secretary, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Department, Government of Tamil Nadu, said the State is the third largest exporter of engineering equipment blessed with natural manufacturing clusters in Chennai, Coimbatore and Tiruchi.

“The Tamil Nadu government is in the process of formalising Business and Trade Promotion Organisation to promote investment in the MSME sector and to forge trade ties with various countries,” Yadav added. The three-day IESS VIII expo, to be held during March 14-16 at the Chennai Trade Centre, will showcase the engineering prowess of Indian manufacturers and help them leverage global business opportunities. The exhibition will see participation of 400 exhibitors, 500 overseas buyers and 10,000 trade buyers conduct business at the venue.

“Malaysia is the 11th largest trading partner and 25th largest investor in India and its participation at IESS 2019 will be a major game changer,” said Ravi Sehgal, Chairman, EEPC India.

“As India and Malaysia are moving towards a technology-driven automotive industry, this is the most appropriate time for Malaysia Automotive Robotics and IoT Institute (MARii) to play a lead role in global forums like IESS,” Sehgal added.

Published On : 14-03-2019

Source : The Hindu BusinessLine