Do it yourself

 On 29 th June 2022, Reuters reported a trade deal that could have material and far reaching implications for India’s external trade in particular and the global trade in general as well. As per the agency, it has accessed documents from the Indian Custom department showing that Ultratech, the largest cement manufacturer in India, has imported 1,57,000 tonnes of coal, worth USD25.81million (appx INR2000cr), from Russia. The consignment is invoiced in Chinese currency Yuan (CNY), implying that the payment will be made in CNY, without using the global payment network like SWIFT. The agency also reported that other companies have also placed orders for Russian coal using CNY payments. ( see here ) This could be the first instance of an Indian company using CNY to make international payments. Apparently, this time the transaction could be to circumvent the international sanctions on Russia. Ultratech would be using USD to buy CNY in China or Hong Kong to pay the Russian coal produce...

The foreign trade of India is presently standing at a critical threshold. A successful crossover will open abundant opportunities, while a failure will close many more doors. Before looking at the opportunity, it is pertinent to note the current state of affairs of our foreign trade. The broader picture of India's foreign trade could be summarized as follows: (a)    India's total exports have mostly ranged between $25bn and $30bn per month since 2011. (b)    India's total imports have mostly ranged between $35bn and $45bn per month since 2011. (c)     India's trade balance has consistently worsened since 2004, and is mostly ranging between $10bn and $15bn since 2011. (d)    India's non oil trade balance has worsened materially since 2004 and stands close to $100bn per annum. (e)     India's foreign trade growth has consistently lagged the overall GDP Growth since 2012. ...