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FISME Newsletter
Federation of Indian Micro and Small and Medium Enterprises (FISME)

• Prime Minister Meets SMEs to Finalize Response To Economic Slowdown
  Prime Minister Dr. Manomohan Singh met with representatives of SMEs on 8th December and discussed policy response required to address challenges faced by them amidst economic slowdown. Mr. V.K. Agarwal - Sr. Vice President handed the FISME's Representation to the Prime Minister. Besides the Minister of MSME and Principal Secretary to the PM, Secretary of MSME and DC-MSME were also present.
• FISME signs MOU with Suriname India Investment and Trade Promotion Organisation (SITPO)
  Shri Anand Sharma, Minister of State for External Affairs, visited Suriname from 15-17 May, 2008.
• Freeze loan repayment for now
  Indian corporates and banks, which generously tapped these financial markets for cheap short-term funds through ECBs and a range of new-age financial instruments, suddenly found the door firmly shut.
• Govt bets on tax cuts, spending for growth
  The government slashed Central value added-tax (Cenvat) by four percentage points across the board to boost demand and announced Rs 20,000 crore additional non-plan expenditure as part of a much-anticipated package to stimulate the economy hit hard by the global financial crisis.
• Medium, small and micro enterprises feel small
  The medium, small and micro enterprises (MSMEs), which account for over 40 per cent of India's industrial production, are unhappy over the fiscal measures that were announced today.
• >>>READ MORE (FISME in Media)
  >>>READ MORE (FISME in Media)
• Guarantee limit for MSMEs raised to Rs 1 cr
  The government raised the guarantee limit that could be availed by the fund-starved micro and small enterprises from Rs 50 lakh at present to Rs 1 crore, seeking to boost bank credit to the sector.
• Negative show: Industrial output contracts in October
  The Index for Industrial Production (IIP) has posted a negative growth of (-)0.4 per cent in October as against a robust 12.2 per cent in the same month last year. However, between April and October the index had grown by 4.1 per cent compared with 9.9 per cent in the same period in 2007.
• Banks lend even less, park more in SLR
  Last month's cut in the statutory liquidity ratio, the percentage of deposits banks need to keep in government securities, helped little in lifting bank lending. Domestic banks, public and private, invested Rs 93,216 crore in SLR papers in November, a 400% rise over October's Rs 18,690 crore, RBI data showed.
• UBI to restructure SME, MSME accounts
  United Bank of India (UBI) would restructure Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) accounts, hit hard by the present global meltdown, from turning into non profitable assets.
• Separate bourses for SMEs by March 2009
  The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) is in the process of finalising the guidelines and procedures for setting up of smaller exchanges. These would cater to the financial requirements of SMEs.
• Refund of service tax on foreign agent commissions up to 10%
  In a major relief to the exporters reeling under a global demand slump, the government today allowed up to 10 per cent refund of service tax on foreign agent commissions and offered a two per cent interest subsidy that could be raised further and extended till next fiscal.
• Union Bank to focus on SME lending
  Union Bank of India (UBI) will convert 100 of its branches into specialized ones focusing exclusively on small and medium enterprises, chairman and managing director M.V. Nair said on Thursday. The branches will extend loans of up to Rs35 crore to SMEs that have a turnover of less than Rs1,000 crore, he said.
• Indian generic drug sales growth slumps to 3.6%
  While the global generic market is slowing down, the Indian pharmaceutical companies - who operate in this space in the US and UK - might have more cause for worry. Global prescription sales growth of generics drugs has slowed to 3.6% in the year ended September 2008, down from the 11.4% last year, according to IMS Health, a US-based research and consultancy firm.
• Monitor clients' forex exposure, RBI tells banks
  The Reserve Bank of India has directed all scheduled commercial banks having large foreign currency exposures to clients - about $25 million or its equivalent - to monitor and review on a monthly basis, through a suitable reporting system, the unhedged portion of their foreign currency exposures.
• Unido inks MoU with Tamil Nadu to promote SMEs in auto sector
  The United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (Unido) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Tamil Nadu Technology Development and Promotion Centre (TNTDPC) for the consolidated project for small and medium enterprise (SME) development. The project is aimed at to promote small and medium enterprises in auto components sector.
• 65,000 lose jobs in 3 months across 121 firms: Govt survey
  A survey of 121 export-oriented firms by the commerce ministry has revealed widespread job losses and dip in export orders. However, at the same time, new opportunities have also emerged. But lack of access to bank credit is hampering the companies to take full advantage of it, said a senior government official.
• UP export units eye domestic market
  Small and medium entrepreneurs in Uttar Pradesh (UP) have found their own ways to counter the ongoing recession. Units in UP have been facing the crisis of increased price and supply shortages over 10 months. Firms in the fabrication sector are suffering losses due to the hike in the prices of steel sheets. In Bhadohi, in the carpet belt of UP, exporters have suffered huge losses after their orders were cancelled.
• U.S. and India: Doing Business in Today's Economy
  U.S. and India: Doing Business in Today's Economy
• Read More Events
  Read More Events
• Business Opportunities in Malaysia
  Business Opportunities in Malaysia
• EC Delegation visits FISME for Public Procurement Dialogue
  A delegation from the European Commission comprising of Mr. Erik Nooteboom, Head of International Procurement, Internal Market Directorate and Mr. Jakob Cornides, Trade Directorate from European Commission, Brussels, visited FISME Secretariat in New Delhi on 19th November, 2008 to discuss about India-EU cooperation agreement being under consideration and the possibilities of a Government Procurement Agreement bilaterally and multilaterally.
• Cash flow drying up for Indian small firms
  The Federation of Indian Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises points out that this is not a good time to be asking for money.
• Forex losses singe profits of small firms
  M.K. Mittal (name changed), who runs a small software export business with a turnover of Rs 11 crore, is finding the going tough. He has incurred huge losses in a crumbling foreign exchange derivatives market.
• Credit taps dry up for small industries
  Lack of deep pockets, creditworthiness, alternative funding sources and endurance power adding to woes When Gurinder Singh, who runs a factory that makes small steel parts for farm tractors and cranes, applied to state-run Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) last month for a Rs20 lakh overdraft to import new machinery, he was turned down for the first time.
• Govt mulls Rs 75,000 cr refinance window
  The government and Reserve Bank of India (RBI) are working on opening a massive Rs 75,000 crore refinance window to provide concessional funds for i