Exports destination shifting towards Asia, Africa: PHDCCI

Asia and Africa are fast emerging as India's exports destinations, overtaking traditional markets of the US and Europe, industry body PHDCCI said today.
The share of advanced economies in India's exports decelerated from 44 per cent in 2004-05 to 37 per cent in 2014-15, it said, adding that the share of developing Asia in the country's exports has increased from 48 per cent in 2004-05 to 50 per cent in 2014-15.
PHDCCI president Alok B Shriram asked the government to give support to exporters to increase outbound shipments in developing economies of Asia and Africa.
"The country needs to provide facilitation to exporters to diversify the composition of export basket with enhanced knowledge of foreign markets regarding demand for goods in high growth emerging and developing economies," Shriram said in a statement.

The country's "exports are no longer concentrated on its traditional export destinations as exporters' interest towards Asian and African markets is accelerating year after year", he said.
The shipments have reported a gradual shift in its export destinations from traditional to non-traditional markets, he added.

Shriram also said India's exports product composition to different regions is still concentrated in top 10 commodities of exports.
Further, he said India needs to enhance its productivity in the manufacturing sector with a major focus on research and development and new product innovations.
"Export infrastructure needs to be enhanced in terms of capacity expansion of ports, state-of-the-art facilities in the railways and improved quality of roads," he added.

Commenting on the launch of the country's first SNZ at
Bharat Diamond Bourse (BDB) here, GJEPC Chairman Praveenshankar Pandya said, "The creation of SNZs and regular availability of direct supply of rough diamonds in the country itself and within easy access, will not only save time and effort of travel by diamond manufacturers, who move to different centres to procure rough diamonds, it will also minimise middlemen commissions and eventually costs."
The wide array of rough diamonds on offer to Indian buyers will be unprecedented; as will be the number of companies, including medium and small enterprises, who will have the never-before opportunity to procure rough directly from mining companies, he added.

Speaking about the future plans, he said, "Once the operations of the SNZ are fine-tuned, similar SNZs will be set up by GJEPC in association with various state governments.
"The Gujarat government has already proposed to set up a gem bourse with such SNZ set up inside it. The concept can also be extended to coloured gemstones segment in Jaipur where the council has proposed to set up a gem bourse," he added.
Speaking on the occasion, Rio Tinto Diamonds Managing Director, Jean-Marc Lieberherr, said the company's first diamond project in Madhya Pradesh is in final stages and is expected to become operational in 2017.