Core industries index posts modest annual rise with mixed sectoral performance and provisional data revisions.
The Index of Eight Core Industries for July 2015 records the combined index at 168.0 with April-July cumulative growth of 2.1 percent. Monthly sectoral movements were mixed: positive contributions from electricity, refinery products, fertilizers, coal and cement, and declines in crude oil, natural gas and steel. Data are provisional and selected prior year indices have been revised where updated data were received.

Customs exchange rate update: CBEC amends notified foreign currency rates for import and export transactions effective immediately.
The Central Board of Excise & Customs, under Section 14 of the Customs Act, substitutes entries in Notification No. 81/2015-CUSTOMS (N.T.), replacing Serial Nos. 4, 5 and 15 in Schedule I to set distinct rupee-equivalent rates for Danish Kroner, Euro and Swiss Franc for imported and export goods, and replacing Serial No. 1 in Schedule II to set distinct rupee-equivalent rates for Japanese Yen; the amendment is effective from 26th August, 2015.

Policy repo rate guidance: TAC split between recommending easing to support growth and advising pause pending data.
Members reported weak domestic activity with subdued IIP and consumer demand, falling exports and mixed inflation signals; monsoon revival and soft global commodity prices could temper food inflation while core inflation showed upward pressure partly from tax and petrol changes. The TAC was split on the policy repo rate: a majority urged an easing to support growth given benign headline inflation prospects and improving fiscal metrics, while a minority recommended maintaining rates due to surplus liquidity, slowing credit growth and the need to await forthcoming data.

Regulatory reform streamlining licensing and online registrations to simplify business compliance and speed investor clearances.
A comprehensive regulatory streamlining initiative simplifies and digitises business compliance and clearances by consolidating licensing and registration services on a single online portal, enabling simultaneous company incorporation and director identification, reducing documentation for trade, abolishing certain formalities such as minimum paid-up capital and affidavit requirements, adopting updated industrial classification, expanding industrial license validity, automating social security registrations, and publishing checklists and timelines to expedite foreign investment and other clearances.

Export quality control: new sub-office and laboratory to strengthen seafood inspection and testing capacity, reducing transport time.
Establishment of a sub-office and laboratory complex of the Export Inspection Council at Visakhapatnam will provide state-of-the-art laboratory infrastructure and instruments to meet local analytical requirements of seafood industries, reduce transportation time and cost, and support exporter compliance. The project is framed within the EIC's statutory mandate under the Export (Quality Control and Inspection) Act, 1963 and builds on the existing Export Inspection Agency-Chennai regional structure and the Visakhapatnam sub-office's prior limited microbiological testing capacity.

Exchange rate determination fixes distinct import and export currency conversion rates for customs valuation effective from the notified date.
The Central Board of Excise & Customs, exercising powers under section 14 of the Customs Act, prescribes specific rates for conversion between listed foreign currencies and Indian currency for import and export goods, effective 21st August, 2015, superseding the prior notification. Schedule I fixes per unit exchange rates with separate columns for imported and export goods; Schedule II fixes rates per 100 units where applicable, also distinguishing import and export rates.

Works contract taxability clarified: indivisible works contracts not taxable under pre-enactment service tax framework due to absence of valuation rules
The Finance Act, 1994's definition of "taxable service" and the services enumerated in Section 65(105) refer to service contracts simpliciter and do not cover composite indivisible works contracts; absent express statutory charge and valuation/assessment machinery for the service element of such contracts prior to the legislative amendment, the Act did not permit levy of service tax on indivisible works contracts.

Economic integration with CLMV to promote regional value chain participation and coordinated trade investment skills policy, facilitating Indian investment.
The Report advocates an integrated approach across trade, services, investment and skills to strengthen India CLMV economic linkages, develop Regional Value Chains, and advance employment and poverty reduction objectives. It identifies information, communication, skill, banking and SME integration gaps; prioritises sectors including agro processing, pharmaceuticals, light engineering, garments, automobiles, education, IT, tourism and skill development; and recommends promoting Indian manufacturing and investment in CLMV, increasing Indian bank presence, and aligning India's commercial interests with CLMV policy focus to operationalise Act East objectives.

Foreign trade policy reforms expand export incentives and ease trade procedures to boost merchandise and services exports.
Trade-deficit management focuses on curbing imports of petroleum and gold through import appraisal and tariff measures, while the Foreign Trade Policy 2015-20 deploys MEIS and SEIS to incentivise export diversification, simplifies documentary requirements, expands online processing and integrates health and quarantine clearances with customs systems to reduce transaction costs and expedite trade.

State trade council established to coordinate state export policies and facilitate regular stakeholder engagement and export promotion.
Constitution of a Council for Trade Development and Promotion establishes an institutional mechanism for sustained intergovernmental coordination and stakeholder dialogue to integrate State and UT perspectives into national export policy. The Council provides a forum for States/UTs to articulate trade policy priorities, seek assistance for export promotion initiatives, and submit proposals for the Council's agenda. The Department of Commerce has identified state-level initiatives-preparation of Export Strategies, appointment of Export Commissioners, and institution of Export Awards-and reported current implementation metrics.

Cancellation of SEZ approvals requires developer certification of non-availment or refund of tax benefits and state NOC.
Board of Approval approved cancellation/de-notification of 22 SEZs for unsatisfactory developer progress, subject to the concerned Development Commissioner furnishing a prescribed certificate that the developer has not availed any tax/duty benefits (including Service Tax exemptions) or has refunded any such benefits, and subject to a no objection certificate from the concerned State Government.

Indirect tax collections indicate stronger nominal GDP and an expanded tax base after exclusion of additional revenue measures.
Increase in indirect tax collections during July 2015 and April-July 2015 reflects strengthening underlying economic momentum and an expanded tax base from higher nominal GDP; growth persisted across customs, central excise and service tax, and remained robust even when additional revenue measures such as excise hikes, cess increases, withdrawal of exemptions and a service tax rate rise are excluded.

Indirect tax revenue growth signals stronger provisional collections, with notable rises in excise, service tax and customs.
Provisional indirect tax collections in July 2015 increased 39.1% year on year to Rs. 56,739 crore, achieving 32.6% of the BE 2015-16. Central Excise rose 64.8% (36.6% of BE), Service Tax rose 30.3% (29.0% of BE), and Customs rose 23.2% (31.7% of BE); cumulative receipts up to July show 37.6% year on year growth.

Anti-dumping and safeguard measures protect MSME markets from unfairly priced imports while support schemes boost competitiveness.
Rapid growth of Chinese imports has pressured Indian MSMEs across specified manufactured product groups. The Government relies on anti-dumping duties to address unfair pricing and safeguard duties to manage import surges, administered by the Directorate General of Anti Dumping and Allied Duties and the Directorate General of Safeguards. Domestic laws, technical and safety standards apply to imports unless exempted. Complementary MSME support programmes-competitiveness, credit, cluster development, market development and vendor development-aim to enhance MSME ability to compete with low-cost imports.

Export compliance training equips exporters on statutory requirements and government promotional support for international trade.
FIEO organises certificate programmes to train exporters on introduction to international trade, statutory requirements for export-import, trade finance, export documentation, the role of insurance agencies, and updates on the Foreign Trade Policy, while explaining government and agency promotional support for exporters.

Customs duty on aluminium: industry seeks higher duties on products and scrap to curb import pressure; proposal sent for review.
Adverse international aluminium prices and increased imports of aluminium scrap prompted the Aluminium Association of India to request raising the basic customs duty on aluminium products and increasing duty on aluminium scrap to parity with primary metal; the representation has been forwarded to the Department of Revenue, and an earlier similar request was considered in Budget 2015-16 but not acceded to.

Labour law applicability in SEZs: welfare protections remain fully enforceable and central government cannot relax labour laws.
Labour law applicability in Special Economic Zones is reaffirmed: laws relating to the welfare of labour remain fully applicable within SEZs and the Central Government has no authority to relax those welfare protections under the SEZ legal framework. The Government also conducts periodic policy and operational reviews, based on stakeholder inputs, to facilitate effective implementation of the SEZ scheme.

Export facilitation: new DGFT and FTP measures streamline documentation and enable online processing for exporters.
Directorate General of Foreign Trade permits exporters to use the Export Promotion Capital Goods scheme and reward scrips in the same financial year for notified products/markets, subject to Policy conditions. The Foreign Trade Policy 2015-20 reduces mandatory export/import documents to three each, enables online application submission and fee payment (including card and electronic transfers), supports 24/7 processing via a mobile app, and integrates Plant Quarantine and Food Safety processes with Customs EDI to lower transaction costs and time.

Exchange rate notification: specified currency conversion rates set for customs valuation, distinguishing imported and export goods.
The Central Board of Excise & Customs specified conversion rates for listed foreign currencies into Indian rupees under section 14 of the Customs Act, effective 7th August 2015, superseding the earlier notification except for prior actions. Two schedules set the operative figures: Schedule I gives rupee equivalents per one unit with separate columns for imported and export goods; Schedule II gives rupee equivalents per 100 units for currencies so quoted. These rates are the legally operative conversion figures for customs valuation and currency conversion for the listed currencies from the stated effective date.

Export promotion measures encourage domestic manufacturing and enable import regulation tools to manage trade flows.
Foreign Trade Policy 2015-20 ties export incentives to domestic sourcing and value addition by reducing EPCG export obligations for indigenously procured capital goods and increasing MEIS rewards for high domestic content. The broadly liberal import regime limits prohibited and restricted EXIM Codes to a small share while leaving most items free; the Government conducts periodic import appraisals and may invoke customs duty adjustments, safeguard or anti dumping duties, minimum import prices, quantity or port restrictions, registration requirements and quality standards to regulate imports.