The Minister of Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and Textiles, Shri Piyush Goyal today said India’s exports share in GDP should rise to at least 20%. Shri Goyal also said a strong Rupee will be good for exports.

“If we want to be a $5 Trillion economy, our exports of Goods and Services will have to a Trillion Dollars at least, - ideally 25%, but at the very least 20%! And why I said 25%, because we need to support our import of Oil. And therefore our exports will have to really go up by leaps and bounds so that we can continue to finance our imports and strengthen the Rupee in the days to come,” said Shri Goyal, delivering the keynote address to the ASSOCHAM Annual Sessionon “The great Reset: Reinforcing India’s GlobalPositioning”.

“I personally am not of the old school of thought (or) one section of Industry or society or exporters which believe that a weak Rupee or a weak currency supports exports. I believe a strong currency reflects the strength of a nation and will always be good for exports, because India, at the end of the day, is a net importer of Goods. A strong currency supports the Indian economy,” said Shri Goyal, in his video conference address, throwing open the issue to wider debate.

Shri Goyal said he is hopeful India’s exports will touch $410 Billion in the current Financial Year.

“I am delighted that we are at $374 Bn until February, 2022, i.e. 11 months of this (financial) year. So I do believe that irrespective of problems that we have in the northern parts of Asia-Europe, we are well on track not only to achieve 400 ($400Bn), I am hoping closer to 410 (410Bn),” he said.

Shri Goyal called for the reorienting of economic laws to suit the changing needs of time.

“We will have to look at all of our traditional ways of working or doing business afresh,” he said.

“There comes a time in thedevelopment journey of every country when the countryredefines itself afresh & pushes forward with newresolutions. Today, that time has arrived in thedevelopment journey of India”, said Shri Goyal, quoting Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.

Shri Goyal said the goal of 'AmritKaal' is to ascend to new heights ofprosperity for India and the 135 crore citizens of India.

“There is so much positivity in the world regarding theposition of India and this positivity is because of the hopesand dreams of 130 crore Indians. Today, sentiment has moved away from ‘Why India? to Why notIndia?’”, he said.

Quoting PM Modi, Shri Goyal said, “AmritKaal is of 25 years. But wecannot wait for that long to achieve our goals. Wehave to start now. We don't have a moment to lose”.

Stating that the COVID-19 has presented us with a unique opportunity toattract global manufacturing giants as companies lookto become resilient & diversify supply chains, Shri Goyal said we just need to leverage our ‘EDGE’ to give us an Edge inthe global competition:

○Economies of Scale

○Demographic Dividend

○Good Governance, &

○Encourage Innovation in Industry

Shri Goyal said the Government, through its various bold reforms, has provided anenabling ecosystem for India to make a mark in theGlobal Manufacturing landscape. He stressed that Quality and Productivity will be hallmarksof India’s future Manufacturing ecosystem.

Shri Goyal said the Government is identifying focus areas based on ourCompetitive advantage and Comparative advantage. Union budget 2022 has reinforced our commitment to anAatmanirbhar Bharat. A series of post-budget webinars are in progress,laying emphasis on different aspects likeAatmanirbharta in Defence, GatiShakti, Make in Indiafor the World, Energy for Sustainable Growth, etc.PM Modi is leading from the front by joining thesewebinars personally.

Shri Goyal gave a 3-point Call to Action for the Industry:

1. Explore various FTA provisions and use them to itsfull potential; take active part in existing negotiations, - FTAs are 2-way traffic; we have to be demanders &also accommodate their demands

2. Through actions, instil a feeling of pride in ourcitizens, that our products are at par or even betterthan global products. Make the difference visible!Gone are the days when imported meant better, “Made in India” mark should compete with globalbrands in every category

3. Focus on development of Aspirational districts & Tier2 & 3 cities. These can be the future export hubs.

Shri Goyal said let all of us, - the Industry, Government& Citizens, work together toreinforce India’s position as a world leader by increasing India's share in Global Trade, raising share of Manufacturing in our GDP and aim to reach among the top 3 nations in Global Services Trade.

“Let us Make in India for the World,for which our collective effort (SabkaPrayas) is ofutmost importance,” he said.

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AM/PK/MS