Appointed date flexibility permitted; event-linked appointed date treated as the acquisition date under IndAS 103 for accounting alignment.
Companies may specify the appointed date of a merger by reference to the occurrence of a relevant future event, allowing parties to remain independent until that event occurs. The circular deems the statutory appointed date to be the acquisition date for purposes of IndAS 103, aligning the legal effective date of a scheme with accounting recognition of control in business combinations.

Trade deficit narrows as imports fall and a services surplus partially offsets the merchandise shortfall.
Overall trade position for April-July 2019-20 shows a narrower deficit than the prior year, with an estimated overall trade deficit of USD 32.90 billion. Merchandise exports rose modestly in July while cumulative merchandise exports were slightly lower in dollar terms. Imports contracted-notably oil and non oil categories-reducing the merchandise deficit. A services surplus, based on provisional June data and July estimates, partially offsets the merchandise shortfall; services estimates are subject to revision.

Exchange Rate Determination sets official currency conversion rates for imports and exports effective mid August.
The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, under the Customs Act authority, notifies official conversion rates effective 15 August 2019, specifying separate rupee equivalents for each listed foreign currency for imported goods and for exported goods in Schedule I, and per 100 unit equivalents in Schedule II, superseding the prior notification except as to past actions.

Exchange rate amendment updates Swiss Franc import and export conversion rates under customs notification, effective immediately.
Amendment under section 14 revises Notification No.55/2019-CUSTOMS by substituting serial No.17 in Schedule-I to set distinct rupee equivalents for one Swiss Franc for imported goods and for exported goods, effective as stated in the press release; the change updates the exchange-rate table used for customs valuation and related procedural calculations.

International trade cooperation expanded via MoUs and state-level partnerships to deepen economic and technical ties with the Russian Far East.
A ministerial delegation concluded multiple memoranda of understanding to strengthen trade, investment, scientific and technical cooperation between Indian states, Indian companies and Russian Far East regions. Institutional arrangements agreed include university partnerships, representative offices, cultural and skill development centres, and state-level invitations to investors. Priority collaboration sectors comprise minerals, energy, forestry, healthcare, agriculture and infrastructure, with coordinated B2B meetings and plenary sessions designed to generate concrete project proposals and deepen regional commercial links.

Role of specialised institutes in economic growth emphasized; IIFT's research, training and policy centres highlighted as national resource.
The convocation recognized the institute's role in developing human capital for foreign trade through degree conferrals across multiple programmes and highlighted its strong placements, research-based consultancy, corporate training and policy centres that support trade policy and national economic objectives.

Monetary policy: repo rate cut to 5.40% and accommodative stance to support growth while keeping inflation near target.
The Monetary Policy Committee cut the policy repo rate by 35 basis points to 5.40% and maintained an accommodative stance to achieve the medium term CPI inflation target of 4% 2% while supporting growth. The decision reflects weak domestic and global demand, benign headline inflation with upside food and crude risks, surplus system liquidity, modest transmission to lending rates, and a slight downward revision to the year's GDP growth projection; voting recorded divergence on the magnitude of the cut.

Exchange rate notification fixes foreign-currency conversion rates for customs valuation of imports and exports effective early August.
Determines rates of exchange for specified foreign currencies for customs valuation of imported and exported goods, effective 2nd August, 2019, superseding the prior notification except as to past actions; Schedule I lists per-unit import and export conversion rates and Schedule II lists conversion rates per 100 units for designated currencies to be applied for customs assessment and related regulatory purposes.

Market access and non-tariff barriers: government seeks data and offers support for Indian IT firms' global expansion.
The Commerce Minister urged Indian IT services firms to diversify into new international markets and requested NASSCOM and company managers to supply specific data on market access impediments and non-tariff barriers in China and other East Asian markets, while signalling Government readiness to engage with those countries to facilitate industry expansion.

Community innovation program links grassroots innovators to technical ecosystems, targeting underserved regions and mobilizing local institutions.
The Atal Community Innovation Centre program creates localized innovation hubs to connect community knowledge with technical and market ecosystems, promoting translation of grassroots ideas into commercial products across underserved regions, and linking ACICs with Panchayati Raj institutions while mobilizing CSR and public resources to build inclusive district level innovation infrastructure.

Exchange rate surveillance should remain multilateral to prevent bilateral currency labelling and preserve IMF oversight.
The address emphasizes the Fund's treaty-based mandate for exchange rate surveillance through Article IV consultations, publication of assessments of misalignment and Multiple Currency Practices, and use of technical models. It contrasts this multilateral framework with unilateral bilateral labelling of "currency manipulation," arguing that strengthening the Fund's quota-based legitimacy and integrated surveillance is the proper legal-policy response to ensure even handed oversight and effective management of global spillovers.

National e Commerce policy under formulation; draft published for public comment following broad stakeholder consultations and industry engagement.
Formulation of a National Retail Trade Policy and a draft National e Commerce Policy is proceeding through extensive stakeholder consultations led by DPIIT and the Department of Commerce; a Think Tank and Task Force with government and industry experts examined digital economy challenges, and a draft e commerce policy has been placed in the public domain with comments received from companies, industry associations, think tanks and other stakeholders to inform further consultations.

E commerce policy draft opens regulatory framework for marketplaces, data, infrastructure and domestic digital economy to public consultation.
A draft national policy on e commerce sets a framework for six core areas-e commerce marketplaces, regulatory issues, infrastructure development, data, domestic digital economy stimulation and export promotion-based on Think Tank and Task Force deliberations, technical sub group reports and stakeholder submissions; responsibility for "Matters related to E Commerce" was reallocated to the Department for Promotion of Industry & Internal Trade and the draft was placed in the public domain for consultation.

Import Restriction on Poppy Seeds: imports limited to licit producer countries with mandatory certification and contract registration.
Import of poppy seeds is limited to designated licit producer countries and requires a certificate from the exporting country's competent authority confirming legal cultivation. Importers must register contracts with the Central Bureau of Narcotics prior to import under Department of Revenue guidelines, which may impose country caps and quantitative restrictions. Domestic licit cultivation licences for opium poppy are issued annually under notified General Conditions of Licensing. Accompanying annexes provide recent import and export trade data, with recent figures noted as provisional.

Subsumption of CVD and SAD under GST reduced customs duty receipts and shifted import revenue to IGST and cess.
The subsumption of CVD and SAD into GST from 1 July 2017 shifted import-related revenue composition: customs duty receipts, which rose from 2009-10 to 2016-17, declined after subsumption, while IGST plus Compensation Cess net receipts from imports increased substantially, indicating a reallocation of import tax revenue streams rather than growth in total import taxation.

Bank fraud prevention measures strengthen detection, due diligence and enforcement for large NPAs, with legal and institutional reforms.
The Government has established a framework requiring banks to examine large-value NPAs for possible fraud, report findings to NPA review committees, initiate wilful-default examination upon reporting to the central bank, and seek intelligence inputs. PSBs must enhance due diligence for large loans by obtaining certified passport copies of promoters/directors, consider publishing photographs of wilful defaulters per Board policy, rotate officials and request travel-restriction measures. Reforms include the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, a Central Fraud Registry, the National Financial Reporting Authority and technical connectivity between core banking and messaging systems; central bank data shows detected frauds by institution.

Domestic procurement preference for steel directs public buyers to prioritize domestically manufactured steel, strengthening supply-side protections.
The central government revised the Domestically Manufactured Iron and Steel Products Policy to require ministries, departments and their agencies to procure only domestically produced steel for covered contracts, lowered the procurement-value threshold for application, and included EPC contracts within its scope. Complementary measures include Steel and Steel Product Quality Control Orders applicable to domestic production and imports, imposition of trade remedies to protect domestic industry, and export-promotion schemes to boost steel exports.

Public procurement transparency to expand e-marketplace use; ministries and PSUs urged to simplify registration and onboard.
Action plan to expand Government eMarketplace focuses on simplifying registration and procurement procedures, improving product quality and transparency, onboarding more central ministries, state governments, PSUs and banks, and requiring Joint Secretary-level coordinators to identify additional products and services for procurement through GeM.

Customs exchange rate determination sets new prescribed currency conversion rates for import and export valuation from July 2019.
The Board, exercising the power under Section 14 of the Customs Act, 1962, prescribes specific rupee equivalents for listed foreign currencies to be used for customs valuation, with separate conversion rates for imported and exported goods set out in Schedule I (per unit) and Schedule II (per 100 units). The notification takes effect from 19th July, 2019 and supersedes the prior notification of 4th July, 2019 except as to past actions.

Trade Partnership advances India UK cooperation to address non tariff barriers and expand services and digital trade.
India and the UK committed to deepening a bilateral Trade Partnership to expand market access, address non tariff barriers, and develop building blocks for more ambitious trade arrangements. The Joint Working Group on Trade will continue sector work streams in food and drink, ICT, and life sciences and expand to chemicals and services, emphasising regulatory cooperation and business engagement. Both parties reaffirmed support for the rules based multilateral trading system and pledged continued WTO cooperation, while advancing MoUs and mechanisms to facilitate investment, digital trade, IP protection, and SME participation.