Government Measures to Boost Export Competitiveness: Cutting Port Charges and Purchasing Vessels

The government's initiatives, including reducing port charges and acquiring additional container vessels through Shipping Corp, aim to enhance export competitiveness. These measures will benefit the Indian industry by reducing logistical bottlenecks, cutting costs, and improving the global market competitiveness of Indian goods, thereby fostering growth in exports.

The government's initiatives to cut specific port charges and purchase new container vessels through Shipping Corp are set to boost India's export competitiveness, noted Sanjay Budhia, Chairman of the CII national committee on EXIM, on Friday.

Budhia emphasized that these measures would substantially benefit the Indian industry by making export operations smoother and more cost-efficient.

'This approach will mitigate logistical challenges, reduce costs for exporters, and elevate the competitiveness of Indian products on the global stage,' stated Budhia, who is also the Managing Director of Patton Group.

Such improvements in trade flow, delivery times, and reduced costs will trigger growth in exports and make Indian goods more appealing to international buyers, he added.

Budhia further highlighted that the initiatives are expected to decrease overall shipping costs and make Indian exports more competitively priced, thereby attracting new exporters, particularly SMEs hampered by high logistics expenses.

Lower port costs may also lead to increased trade volumes, realizing economies of scale that further curb logistics expenses and enhance export competitiveness, he remarked.

Budhia also lauded the plan to buy five container vessels as a significant step to increase cargo handling capacity, addressing the shortage of shipping-grade containers that often drives up freight rates for Indian exporters.

(With inputs from agencies.)