Foreign direct investment approvals expand sectoral limits and permit downstream investment, repatriation and equity increases.
Seven FDI proposals amounting to approximately Rs. 981.15 crore were approved, covering downstream investment in pharma, redemption of preference shares after lock in, repatriation under the consolidated FDI policy, an increase in permissible foreign portfolio holding under the Portfolio Investment Scheme for a telecom broadcaster, approval for up to 100% foreign equity in a newly incorporated telecom services company via fresh issue and transfers, conversion of an operating/investing company into a holding/investing company, and an increase in aggregate foreign investment in a bank consequent to a merger.

Digital signatures enable digitally signed invoices and electronic document retention under new procedural safeguards for tax recordkeeping.
Statutory amendments permit manufacturers and service providers to issue digitally signed invoices and to store legally prescribed documents electronically, and a notification together with an administrative instruction prescribes the procedures and safeguards to be followed after consultation with trade stakeholders.

Foreign Direct Investment policy reforms expand automatic route access and raise sectoral participation limits for key industries.
Central government liberalised the Foreign Direct Investment regime through operational and substantive measures: continuous e-filing and procedural placement of proposals before the FIPB; opening rail infrastructure fully to the automatic route; raising foreign equity caps in defence, insurance and pension sectors; permitting full foreign participation in the medical devices carve-out of pharmaceuticals; and reforming construction development rules to ease exit, rationalise area limits and prioritise affordable housing. The statement also treats NRI non repatriation investments under FEMA Schedule 4 as domestic investment for FDI purposes.

Manual scrutiny of service tax returns adopts risk-based central selection with departmental examination under revised guidelines.
Revised guidelines implement a risk-based manual scrutiny regime for service tax returns effective 1 August 2015, aligning compliance verification with Negative List taxation and administrative reorganisation. Executive Commissionerates will focus on scrutiny and anti-evasion while Audit Commissionerates handle audits. Returns for detailed scrutiny will be selected by centrally generated risk parameters, and the detailed scrutiny will be conducted in departmental premises using assessment-related documents obtained from assessees.

Exchange rate notification: prescribed rupee conversion rates for foreign currencies to govern import and export customs calculations.
Determination of specific foreign currency conversion rates for customs purposes takes effect from 17 July 2015, superseding the earlier notification dated 2 July 2015; distinct rupee equivalents are prescribed for listed currencies for imported and export goods in Schedule I (per unit rates) and Schedule II (per 100 units) to be used for calculation and assessment under the Customs Act.

Foreign Direct Investment approvals: multiple cross sector transactions cleared, others deferred or refused under prevailing FDI policy.
The Government approved a set of FIPB-recommended foreign direct investment proposals across pharma, broadcasting, telecom, real estate, LLP and investment fund sectors, authorising acquisitions, downstream investments, fresh equity issues, transfers and post-facto regularisations where they complied with sectoral requirements. Several proposals involved non-cash consideration or share-swap mechanisms. A distinct group of proposals was deferred for further scrutiny due to issues such as sectoral caps, investor-identity changes, secondary market purchases, and conversions of preference shares, while a small number of proposals were refused or not considered for procedural or policy incompatibility.

Trade performance: merchandise exports and imports declined, narrowing the quarterly trade deficit and reducing oil import reliance.
Merchandise trade for June 2015 and April-June 2015-16 shows year on year declines in exports and imports in dollar and rupee terms, resulting in a reduced quarterly merchandise trade deficit. Crude oil imports fell sharply both in June and over the quarter, while non oil imports were slightly lower in June but rose modestly over April-June. Services trade for May 2015 registered a surplus, with receipts exceeding payments.

Indirect tax revenue growth signals improving nominal GDP and broader economic momentum after recent tax policy changes.
Provisional indirect tax collections for April-June 2015 rose 37.4% year on year and June collections rose 33.3%, with growth concentrated in customs, central excise and service tax. Part of the increase reflected specific fiscal measures (excise rises on diesel and petrol, higher clean energy cess, withdrawal of certain exemptions, and increased service tax rate). Excluding these measures, indirect tax growth was 10.8% for June and 14.5% for the quarter, indicating an underlying rise in collections consistent with improving nominal GDP and a broadened tax base.

Mandatory exporter registration digitised; MPEDA launches SMS price alerts and mobile app to aid aquaculture decisions.
MPEDA launched e governance measures: a free missed call SMS shrimp price information service sourcing indicative prices from INFOFISH to inform harvest decisions; mKRISHI, an Android app offering bookkeeping, advisory and weather information with graphical reports and computer viewing; an online exporter registration portal enabling application, scanned document upload, online fee payment via a payment gateway and digital certificate issuance in place of manual processes; and a revamped MPEDA portal consolidating public information on production, exports and services.

Online payment facility enables applicants to pay DGFT application fees electronically, with refunds and next day fund transfer.
The Directorate General of Foreign Trade launched an online payment facility for application fees via credit/debit cards and net banking, supported by an MOU with Central Bank of India to provide the payment gateway, e-challans, transaction IDs, reconciliation support, refunds for failed transactions within three days, and transfer of funds to government accounts on a T+1 working day basis. The release also sets out transaction processing charges for card and net-banking payments, with service tax extra, and lists the participating banks.

Marine products exports hit USD 5.51 billion in 2014-15, led by frozen shrimp despite falling unit prices.
Marine products exports reached USD 5,511.12 million in 2014-15 (10,51,243 MT; Rs. 33,441.61 crores), up 10.05% in USD and 6.86% in quantity. Frozen shrimp dominated exports-about 34% of quantity and over 67% of USD earnings-driven by cultured vannamei growth despite falling unit values late in the year. Frozen fish declined in value and unit price, while value added products and certain species gained. USA, South East Asia and the EU were principal markets; China recorded significant declines. MPEDA set a USD 6.6 billion export target for 2015-16, citing production increases, species diversification, quality controls and infrastructure expansion.

Exchange rate determination for customs: specified foreign currency rates set for import and export valuation, effective immediately.
The Central Board fixes exchange rates for specified foreign currencies for customs valuation, superseding a prior notification and applying from 3rd July, 2015; Schedule I provides per unit import and export rates, while Schedule II provides rates per one hundred units, with distinct figures for imported and export goods.