India establishes weekly trade monitoring mechanism

The India===Ministry of Trade and Industry announced the establishment of a weekly monitoring mechanism to track export-import trends and sectoral stress indicators. This initiative comes in response to concerns over supply chain disruptions, logistics constraints, and rising input costs, particularly due to geopolitical tensions in West Asia. Two key meetings, chaired by Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal and co-chaired by the Shipping Secretary, addressed these challenges. Industry stakeholders highlighted increased prices of critical inputs, especially impacting Small and medium enterprises, and called for support such as continued availability of LNG, helium, and petrochemical derivatives, along with early Value-added tax refunds. The India===Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways has also directed ports to enhance transparency and operational efficiency, including expediting container evacuation. The measures aim to stabilize supply chains and support India's exporting community.