Foreign Investment Protection Agreement progress enables delinking of social security pact and prompts trade and visa facilitation
Residual issues concerning a Foreign Investment Protection Agreement and a Bilateral Social Security Agreement have been resolved and may be signed, with the social security instrument delinked from the investment pact. Ministers sought intensified government-private sector engagement via the CEO Forum, urged Canadian businesses to enter long term commercial potash supply agreements, and raised impediments to movement of IT professionals affecting services trade; the Canadian side reported a policy change on multiple entry visas for passports with extended validity.

Generalized System of Preferences progress noted, urging timely reauthorization and complementary Totalization Agreement for social security coordination.
Generalized System of Preferences reauthorization was noted with satisfaction regarding Senate progress and an expectation of timely legislative resolution; the meeting also urged early conclusion of a Totalization Agreement to address social security coordination and highlighted procedural visa impediments affecting H1B and L1 admissions for the Indian IT industry.

Service tax on renting of immovable property treated as a taxable service, allowing retrospective levy under residuary powers.
Service tax applies to letting or leasing of immovable property for commercial purposes because such transactions involve an element of value addition and thus an element of service; the levy targets the activity and not the land or building, placing it outside the State list entry and within the residuary Union entry. Parliament may validly enact retrospective amendments to cure deficiencies identified by prior judicial decisions and validate prior imposition of tax and penalties under the amended provision.

Free movement of professionals urged to remove visa and social security barriers and facilitate bilateral investment and mobility.
Free movement of professionals is advanced as a primary policy objective, urging remedy of constraints in H1B and L1 visa issuance and early conclusion of a Totalization Agreement to coordinate cross border social security. The document also reports ongoing technical negotiations on a Bilateral Investment Treaty and recent FDI liberalisations-permitting investment in Limited Liability Partnerships and removing prior joint venture clearance requirements-while promoting the National Manufacturing Policy and establishment of National Investment and Manufacturing Zones to attract investment.

Wholesale price inflation shows mixed weekly shifts impacting food and energy price trends and short run volatility.
Wholesale price dynamics for the week ending 10 September 2011 show divergent movements across major groups: Primary Articles registered a marginal weekly decline while Food Articles and Non Food Articles showed modest rises and Minerals fell; Fuel & Power rose on higher electricity prices. Annual point to point inflation for Primary Articles and Fuel & Power moved relative to the prior week. Annexures present weight based indices, week over week changes, build up from end March and 52 week averages for detailed monitoring of short run volatility.

Bilateral investment treaty talks nearing completion, prompting trade missions and high-level meetings to deepen investment ties.
Bilateral Investment Treaty discussions between India and the United States are reported to be nearing completion, with an imminent meeting with the USTR under the Trade Policy Forum to resolve remaining trade issues. High-level bilateral engagement includes reciprocal trade missions and an India Business Forum meeting in Chicago to deepen investment ties. The Minister stressed India's ongoing economic liberalisation, commitment to further reform, and a stable rule-based legal framework to attract foreign investment, highlighting infrastructure financing needs and opportunities for technology transfer.

Payment of statutory dues and wages approved as interim financial support to sustain operations of sick public sector enterprises.
Approval was granted for providing non-plan budgetary support to pay outstanding statutory dues and salary and wages for ten sick or loss-making CPSEs under the Department of Heavy Industry for the quarter 1.1.2011-31.3.2011 as interim financial assistance to prevent operational disruption, mitigate employee hardship, and ensure statutory compliance while revival or closure decisions remain pending.

Wholesale price inflation for primary articles and fuel & power remains elevated, with mixed weekly commodity movements.
Wholesale price trends for the week ending 3 September 2011 show elevated year on year inflation in Primary Articles and Fuel & Power with modest weekly change. Primary Articles rose slightly due to higher prices in Food Articles (milk, gram, arhar, fruits and vegetables) and a stronger rise in Non Food Articles driven by logs & timber and other raw materials. Fuel & Power was flat at the major group level but reflected item level increases in lubricants and bitumen and declines in naphtha, aviation turbine fuel and LPG. Annexures provide detailed weekly indices and six week trends for key commodities.

Wholesale Price Inflation rises, led by fuel, primary articles and manufactured products; monthly and annual inflation remain elevated.
The official WPI (base 2004-05=100) for August 2011 rose to 154.9 (provisional) with the annual inflation rate at 9.78 percent; build up inflation for the financial year so far is reported. Primary Articles, Fuel & Power and Manufactured Products each showed month over month movements: Primary Articles rose with mixed food and non food shifts, Fuel & Power increased due to higher petroleum product prices, and Manufactured Products rose modestly with sectoral divergences. Annexed tables provide weights, monthly and year on year rates and six month trends for major groups and selected items.

Wholesale Price Inflation: primary articles up slightly while fuel and power indices remain stable, showing persistent annual inflationary pressure.
Wholesale prices for the week ended 27 August 2011 show the Primary Articles index rising 0.2 percent to 201.4 with an annual inflation rate of 13.34 percent, while the Fuel & Power index remained unchanged at 166.8 with an annual rate of 12.55 percent. Subgroup movements identify food items (poultry, pulses, spices) and non food items (flowers, oilseeds, raw rubber) as primary drivers, and annexed tables provide weights, build up since end March, year on year rates and six week trend series for key commodities.

Trade data disclosure: bilateral cross-border trade via Attari-Wagha border reported, detailing exports and imports by land and rail.
Disclosure of bilateral trade figures for the Attari Wagha border provides year wise exports and imports for 2008-09 through 2010-11, reported separately for the Attari Road Land Customs Station and the Attari Rail Cargo Land Customs Station in rupee crore, distinguishing land road and rail cargo flows.

Investment node designation under industrial corridor prompts technical assistance conditional on provision of land, water and power.
Designation of Morena as an investment node under the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor Project is the operative proposal, and consideration of central technical assistance is expressly conditional on the State providing adequate land, water and power for node development.

Manufacturing policy to reduce compliance through self-regulation aims to boost manufacturing growth and competitiveness for industry.
The Government is considering a manufacturing policy intended to reduce the compliance burden on industry through self-regulation, with the objective of enhancing global competitiveness and improving manufacturing and overall industrial growth prospects; this measure is presented alongside 11th Plan priorities of infrastructure creation, facilitation of industrial investment including foreign direct investment, business environment improvements, and industry-relevant skills development.

National Manufacturing Policy to expand manufacturing share and jobs by promoting NMIZs, easing regulation, and encouraging private sector skills.
The National Manufacturing Policy aims to raise manufacturing's GDP share and create large scale employment by improving the business environment, easing technology acquisition, enhancing SME access to capital, and expanding private sector roles in skill development. Implementation measures include establishing several National Manufacturing Investment Zones as greenfield integrated industrial townships through central-state partnerships, funding new investment regions within the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor following perspective planning, and coordinating reforms via a Joint Task Force while monitoring credit cost measures for exporters and industry.

Trade deficit widens as imports grow faster than exports, driven by rising oil and non oil import values.
Monthly foreign trade statistics for July 2011 show substantial year on year increases in exports and imports, with imports rising strongly and the April-July trade deficit widening relative to the prior year; oil and non oil import values both increased, with non oil imports recording larger percentage growth.

Wholesale Price Index rise in primary articles and mixed fuel & power movement signal continued high inflationary pressures.
Wholesale Price Index movements for the week ended 20 August 2011 show Primary Articles rising weekly-driven by higher food and mineral prices-with point to point annual inflation remaining elevated; Fuel & Power registered a slight weekly decline led by lower diesel and aviation turbine fuel prices but sustained high year on year inflation. Annexures provide item level week, build up and six week trend data for key commodity groups.

GST rollout planning advances with study visits and IT pilot to strengthen inter state tax verification and reduce evasion.
State finance ministers will study European indirect tax systems to inform a proposed GST, with three subgroups preparing reports on legislation, central GST, and state GST. Concurrently, states are to implement an information-technology network to curb revenue leakages and enable cross-verification of seller and buyer data for inter state transactions; a pilot revealed significant losses and wider pilot testing across multiple states is planned to assess the system before GST implementation.

Interest subvention increases prompt pay repayment incentive, lowering short term crop loan interest for timely repaying farmers under the government scheme.
The Interest Subvention Scheme provides one year short term crop loans up to Rs.3 lakh through Public Sector Banks, Regional Rural Banks and Cooperative Banks, combining a base subsidy with an additional prompt repayment subvention; the increased additional subvention reduces the effective interest rate for prompt payee farmers, applying to pre harvest and proposed post harvest management loans.

Disinvestment of minority stake: approval with book building, retail and employee discounts and employee reservation applied.
Approval was granted for the disinvestment of a 5% paid-up equity stake in Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited through a domestic book-building process, reducing the Government's shareholding; ten percent of shares in the further public offer are reserved for employees, and price discounts are to be offered to retail investors and employees.

Index of Eight Core Industries shows sustained expansion driven by electricity and steel despite contraction in natural gas.
The Index of Eight Core Industries (weight 37.90% in the IIP) rose in July 2011 year on year, with electricity generation and steel as the principal positive contributors, cement and refinery products showing moderate growth, and natural gas and fertilizers recording contractions; the release supplies monthly indices and April-July cumulative growth comparisons and states that data are provisional and subject to revision.