RELIEF export cover extended to 31 March 2027; claims go via ECGC portal
The Commerce Department has extended Component II of RELIEF by six months to 31 March 2027, keeping 95% risk cover and premium protection for shipments to the Gulf.
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TradeAnalysis
India-US deal is unsigned, and Indian goods face a 10% extra US levy
Goyal says talks are being fine-tuned, but no legal text is signed. Indian goods carry a 10% US levy today, and the 18% on offer would cost more.
ShippingAnalysis
China-India box rates fall 10-20%, but port delays eat into the saving
Spot rates from major Chinese ports to Nhava Sheva and Chennai are down 10-20%, and other Asian hubs are also easing. Delays can take back part of the gain.
India expected to extend duty-free cotton imports to end-December
Sources say the 11% cotton duty waiver will run to 31 December, but no order is out yet. Cargo cleared from 1 November faces the full duty unless the order lands first.
MarketsAnalysis
BPCL cuts Russian crude for November as freight erases its discount
BPCL expects to cut Russian crude sharply in November as freight and weak offers make Gulf grades cheaper. Its Mumbai and Kochi maintenance adds December quarter risk.
US formalises China-linked ship fee pause until 9 January 2027
USTR has formalised its pause on Section 301 port fees for China-linked ships, holding the charges off until 9 January 2027. Comments on the extension run to 30 October.
ShippingAnalysis
Far East-Europe box rates turn up, but Indian quotes still falling
Xeneta's 23 October averages show Far East to North Europe up 6.8% on the week and the Mediterranean up 5.8%, ending a slide from July. Indian exporters are quoting lower.
TradeAnalysis
Gokaldas deepens Europe push as India-EU duty-free trade nears
Indian apparel exporters are reweighting capacity toward Europe before India-EU duty-free trade starts. Buyers face a new origin test and a timing gap.
ShippingAnalysis
India and Russia agree a 2027 Northern Sea Route pilot voyage
Rosatom says a working group agreed a 2027 pilot voyage. Distance, ice and escort costs mean Indian buyers should not expect a freight saving yet.
ShippingAnalysis
IndiGo starts Gulf shift to Navi Mumbai in December; Air India Express from January
IndiGo and Air India Group will shift 133 weekly international departures in phases, with IndiGo starting in December and Air India Express Gulf flights from January.
TradeAnalysis
China to require licences for UAV part exports from 18 November
China will require export licences for UAV engines, autopilots and flight controllers from 18 November, while a draft tech catalogue carries rules already in force.
Railways plans weighment waiver and 25-wagon rakes for export boxes
Indian Railways plans to drop full weighment for export containers and add 25-wagon rakes, but letting private firms maintain wagons is still under discussion.
India-US interim trade deal stalls as Delhi rejects the 18% tariff
India will not accept the 18% rate Washington wants to keep and is inclined to wait until after the 3 November mid-terms, sources told BusinessLine. The 10% levy stays.
MarketsAnalysis
Fertiliser subsidy tops ₹1.03 lakh crore in five months as crude nears $120
The Centre has used more than half its ₹1.70 lakh crore fertiliser budget in five months, and an official expects the bill to reach ₹3 lakh crore as crude and gas stay high.
ShippingAnalysis
Maersk resets India-US peak season surcharge at $3,400 to $5,700
Maersk has cut its India to US peak season surcharge for west coast boxes to $3,400, with $5,150 for northwest India and $5,700 for Houston cargo from India.
Cyclone Arnab threatens Vizag, Kakinada and Krishnapatnam port calls
IMD forecasts a very severe cyclonic storm crossing the Andhra coast between Bapatla and Visakhapatnam on 28 October, with nine southern ports already on cyclone warning.
Supply ChainAnalysis
China's draft solar tech export curbs land on India's cell gap
Beijing has proposed restricting exports of 12 solar manufacturing technologies. India can make 262 GW of modules but only about 37 GW of cells, exposing ALMM-II deadlines and module prices.
Supply ChainAnalysis
What Black Sea attacks mean for India's vegoil import costs
MSC will charge US$200, €200 or £200 a container from 1 November on Greece, Türkiye, Black Sea and non-Italian Adriatic cargo to north Europe and the UK.
ProcurementAnalysis
₹40,000 crore TEEM plan proposes capex support for textile clusters
The textiles ministry has proposed ₹40,000 crore over five years for machinery, testing labs and cluster upgrades. Firms planning capex still have no subsidy rate or Cabinet nod.
ShippingAnalysis
India-Saudi flight cuts thin peak-season air cargo capacity
Air India, IndiGo and Akasa have cancelled flights to four Saudi cities into November, taking belly cargo space out of peak season.
ShippingAnalysis
India's coastal waters rules put older tankers on an April 2027 clock
India's 2026 coastal-waters rules also catch ships that only transit its waters. Older tankers must show valid class and salvage cover by April 2027.
ShippingAnalysis
Panamax freight hits two-month low, a narrow window for India's bulk buyers
The Baltic Dry Index fell 1.2% to 2,660 on 23 October, with weakness concentrated in panamax ships. For India's coal and grain buyers the opening is size-specific, not broad.
ExplainersExplainer
War risk, explained: how conflict adds to an Indian buyer's freight bill
Insurers price a Gulf transit as a percentage of a ship's insured value, and that cost travels into freight and CIF prices. Here is how each layer works.
MarketsAnalysis
Karnataka flour mills get 6,000 tonnes of wheat, 17% of weekly need
Karnataka flour mills drew 6,000 tonnes at FCI's 21 October auction, about 17% of their weekly need, as winning prices rose 6% to 8% in three states.
TradeAnalysis
US proposes holding China-linked ship fees until 9 January 2027
USTR wants to hold China-linked ship fees until 9 January 2027; under the proposal nothing changes on 10 November, and a per-kilo plan remains an outline.
India reimposes anti-dumping duty on Chinese titanium dioxide for five years
India has notified anti-dumping duties of $460 to $681 per tonne on titanium dioxide from China for five years. Paint, plastics and ink buyers face a higher landed cost.
Bulk Scotch concentrate faces 150% duty in first India-UK FTA test
Investigators say bulk Scotch concentrate cannot claim the India-UK FTA's 75% whisky rate and faces 150%. The spirits industry has asked the commerce minister to clarify.
Tamil Nadu cuts Chennai jet fuel tax to 16%, and at its other airports to 1%
Tamil Nadu has cut VAT on jet fuel at Chennai to 16% from 29% for domestic scheduled flights, and to 1% at its other airports. At Chennai the cut covers domestic flights, so export cargo gains only indirectly.
ShippingAnalysis
Boxship charter rates hit four-year high as the 2028 wave builds
Charter rates are at a four-year high and ships are being booked months ahead. Record deliveries from 2027 will loosen the market, but not evenly.
ProcurementAnalysis
BIS can deadline moves to April 2027 as packaging costs jump 30-40%
India has extended BIS certification for aluminium beverage cans to April 2027. Resin is up 15-20% in weeks and packaging bills 30-40%, so buyers face two squeezes.
Supply ChainAnalysis
Boeing's idled 777 freighter line leaves 2027 air capacity exposed
Boeing's 777 freighter line has been idle for nearly two months after a dispute with a sole supplier, potentially putting 2027 capacity relief for buyers at risk.
ShippingAnalysis
Asian orders for US crude halve as tanker freight nears $60 million a voyage
Asian refiners ordered about half as much US crude for November as record tanker rates made the long haul uneconomic. India, courted by Washington, faces the same maths.
TradeAnalysis
The Graham Act pause has no expiry date and no notice to importers
A former Indian petroleum body official calls the relief a 60-day pause. The order sets no expiry date and no notice to importers; a reversal would add 100% duty.
MarketsAnalysis
Silver falls 53% from January record; India approves 6,500 tonnes of imports
MCX silver fell 3.4% to ₹1,92,800 a kg on 23 October, 53% below January's record. India has approved 6,500 tonnes of imports; premiums slid to 45 cents an ounce.
Warehouse leasing rises 26%, but new supply runs ahead in Pune and Ahmedabad
Grade-A warehouse leasing in India rose 26% in January to September, but new supply outran it and Pune's supply rose 105%. Occupiers there face more choice.
MarketsAnalysis
Europe's gas spike raises the cost of India's winter spot LNG
Dutch TTF ended the week at €93.40/MWh, highest since 2022; Asian spot LNG is near $30/MMBtu. India buys over a third of its LNG spot, so city gas prices are rising.
ShippingAnalysis
The other half of India's crude bill: freight, war risk and the rupee
The barrel price is only the first line on a refiner's invoice. Gulf to Asia crude freight is more than five times its pre-war level, with war risk priced separately.
ShippingAnalysis
Container rates split: Asia-Europe rises, India-US east coast eases
Drewry's World Container Index rose 2% to $4,585 per 40ft. Carriers are adding blank sailings and November FAK rates even as intra-Asia and India-US lanes soften.
Supply ChainAnalysis
India phone shipments fall 20% to a decade low as memory costs bite
India's smartphone shipments fell 20% in the September quarter, with sub-₹20,000 models down 47%, as memory costs lifted prices. Buyers face more rises after Diwali.
Natural rubber hits record ₹290/kg, lifting costs for tyre buyers
Domestic RSS-IV rubber reached ₹290 a kg, about ₹20 above Bangkok, on strong tyre demand and tight supply. Buyers of tyres and rubber goods face firm input costs.
MarketsData
India flash PMI: input-cost inflation slowest in a year, delivery times shorten
India's October flash PMI shows slower input-cost inflation and faster supplier deliveries. But steel, freight and crude costs remain high, and the survey closed in mid-October.
Champi weakens to 90 knots, but China port curbs threaten India-bound cargo
Champi weakened to 90 knots, two days after peaking at 240 km/h, but Yangtze pilotage was reported suspended and delays at Shanghai and Ningbo run about four days.
GST process reforms to start 1 November, notifications awaited
Notifications due 23 October will set out simpler registration for small marketplace sellers and 90% provisional refunds; law changes wait to April 2027.
Maersk and Hateco sign MoU for northern Vietnam rail freight network
APM Terminals and Hateco will study rail freight terminals in northern Vietnam. The $3.5bn figure is a ceiling for all Vietnam projects, not committed rail capex.
ProcurementAnalysis
BCGCL starts Odisha coal-to-chemicals build with ₹15,000 crore awarded
Bharat Coal Gasification has begun site work on a ₹25,000 crore Odisha plant and placed ₹15,000 crore of orders, but the output is earmarked for Coal India's own mines.
ShippingAnalysis
Maersk's March 2027 Suez target: what it means for 2027 contracts
Maersk expects all services back through Suez by March 2027 and Hapag-Lloyd expects more services to return. Buyers signing 2027 contracts still need a Cape fallback.
MarketsAnalysis
K+N air volumes rise 10% as DSV reports 3% decline in Q3
Kuehne+Nagel's air volumes grew 10% in Q3 while DSV's fell 3%, pointing to share shifts, not a bigger peak. Indian exporters face tighter belly space to Europe.
ProcurementAnalysis
India's LNG sourcing flips: Qatar 45% to 3%, a third now spot
Kpler data show Qatar's share of India's LNG fell to 3% from 45% in March to September, with more than a third of cargoes now bought at spot prices near $30 per mmbtu.
TradeAnalysis
India-EU FTA could apply duty cuts from early 2027, Goyal says
Goyal says the deal could apply four to five months after signature. For buyers of EU machinery, chemicals and cars, duty cuts are phased over years, not zero on day one.
ShippingAnalysis
Air freight enters peak season 26.4% up as India belly space tightens
The Baltic Air Freight Index rose 4.7% in the week to 19 October, 26.4% above last year. India's exporters face a costlier Q4, less belly space and a firm fuel floor.