India’s edible oil industry flags 17-fold surge in Nepal imports, seeks policy review.
The Indian Vegetable Oil Producers' Association (IVPA) has urged the Centre to undertake an urgent review of the country's edible oil import policy after a sharp rise in duty-free imports of refined edible oils from Nepal under the South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) agreement. According to the industry body, imports from Nepal increased from 47,295 tonnes in 2023 to 124,056 tonnes in 2024, before surging to more than 804,000 tonnes in 2025—a more than 17-fold jump in two years. At the current pace, annual imports could approach one million tonnes, potentially making Nepal one of India's largest suppliers of refined edible oils.
Source: economictimes.indiatimes.com
India-Tibet barter trade via Lipulekh Pass to resume next month after 7 years.
The annual barter trade between Indian and Tibetan traders, which was suspended during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2019, is set to resume on August 1 through the Lipulekh Pass in Uttarakhand's Pithoragarh district, officials said on Monday. Traders, however, said the delayed start of the cross-border exchange of goods will not benefit much as the trade is restricted until October, and Tibetan buyers start losing interest after August.
Source: thehindubusinessline.com
India’s 8th Trade Policy Review at WTO Scheduled on 21 and 23 July 2026.
India’s 8th Trade Policy Review (TPR) meeting at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) is scheduled to be held on 21st and 23rd July 2026. India’s official delegation for the TPR is headed by Commerce Secretary, Shri Rajesh Agarwal.
Source: pib.gov.in
APEDA Facilitates First Export of 24 Tonnes Frozen French Fries from Uttarakhand to Iraq.
The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), under the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Government of India, has facilitated the first export of 24 Tonnes of Frozen French Fries from Kashipur in Udham Singh Nagar district of Uttarakhand to Iraq. Exported by Virun Global Trade Pvt. Ltd., the consignment marks a significant milestone in promoting value-added agricultural exports from Uttarakhand while strengthening India's processed food export basket.
Source: pib.gov.in
India Deepens Trade Ties With Asia, Africa As Western Share Declines.
Indian equity markets witnessed sharp selling pressure on Monday, with the Sensex plunging over 700 points intraday and the Nifty slipping to 24,150, amid weak global cues and cautious investor sentiment. The market volatility comes as India's trade landscape undergoes a structural shift, with Asia and Africa accounting for a growing share of the country's commerce, while Europe and the Americas gradually lose ground. Economists say the trend reflects changing global supply chains, stronger regional economic ties and the faster expansion of emerging markets.
Source: businessworld.in
Murmu's first Moldova visit puts UN reforms, trade ties in focus.
India and Moldova discussed reforms of multilateral organisations, including the UN Security Council, and cooperation in the fight against terrorism during President Droupadi Murmu's state visit to the Eastern European country on Monday, a top Indian diplomat said. The visit, the first by an Indian head of state to Moldova since diplomatic relations were established in 1992, also focused on expanding ties in trade, investment, technology, education and other sectors.
Source: indiatoday.in
Shipping delays hit Indian banana exports.
The Iran-U.S. war is disrupting banana exports from India, with large consignments stranded at overseas ports as the Strait of Hormuz remains closed to shipping, according to R. Selvarajan, director of the ICAR–National Research Centre for Banana (NRCB). Selvarajan says: 'India was a major exporter of Grand Naine bananas to Iran and Iraq, as also nendran to the Gulf Cooperation Council countries before the war. The transit time for shipping used to be just one week to 10 days. Now, due to political tensions and the closing of shipping at the Strait of Hormuz, the consignments are held up for 20 to 25 days, causing a lot of fruit damage.'
Source: freshplaza.com
Tirupati Begins First Mango Pulp Exports To UK Under India-UK FTA.
The first container carrying mango pulp from Tirupati was flagged off for export to the United Kingdom on Monday following the implementation of the India-United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement (FTA). The container, exported by Tirupati-based Sri Varsha Foods, was flagged off by RP Naidu, regional assistant general manager of the agricultural and processed food products export development authority; Phani Kiran, deputy director general of foreign trade, horticulture joint director Devamuni Reddy and Tirupati district horticulture officer Jayabharath Reddy.
Source: deccanchronicle.com
Chouhan calls for action plan to boost India’s mango exports.
Union agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has called for focused interventions in the mango sector to ensure higher returns for farmers and boost exports. During a meeting with Lucknow-based Udyan Ratna awardee and mango expert SC Shukla, along with woman orchardist Uma, at his official residence in New Delhi on Sunday, Chouhan stressed the need for an effective action plan to significantly increase mango exports from India next year. Shukla told the minister that farmers could earn up to 10 times more per acre through high-density mango cultivation compared with conventional orchards.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
Indian govt to scale up digital crop survey in the current kharif season.
After covering 31.3 crore plots in 4.41 lakh villages during the last Rabi season under the Digital Crop Survey (DCS) to collect data on crops grown by farmers, the government plans to scale it up to 45 crore plots in 5.53 lakh villages in the ongoing Kharif season, as 10.15 crore Farmer IDs have been created across 20 States. There were near-real-time production estimates from the crop-grown area collected through DCS in Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra, official sources said, adding this helped to scale it up to more areas. 'As several schemes are being tagged with Digital Farmer ID, very soon the government will also start personalised advisory on crop selection, as well as scientific farming,' a senior official said.
Source: thehindubusinessline.com