SME Times News Bureau | 20 May, 2010
The Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) has said that the first month export figures of the current fiscal is a clear indication that the country would be able to meet the export target of USD 200 billion set for 2010-11.

According to official figures released on Wednesday, India's merchandise exports posted a staggering 36.2 percent growth in April to USD 16.9 billion y-o-y on back of high overseas demand.

FIEO President, A. Sakthivel welcomed the recently reported export figures, adding that growth in import by 43.3 percent in April 2010 is an indication of complete revival of manufacturing sector which will further facilitate exports in months to come.

He, however, added that there is need to renew the position in exports front in view of the setback in Euro zone recently and hoped that the crisis will not spread further.

Recently, a  crisis of confidence in Europe has been triggered by a potential debt default by Greece. The European Union and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have announced a $1 trillion emergency financial aid package, which is expected to stabilise world financial markets and curb speculative attacks on the Euro.

Sakthivel said that the government needs to provide concessional export credit even when the base rate becomes operational as the interest rate in India is much above the rate at which credit is available to our competitors.