Morocco has started importing rice to address the drastic shortfall in domestic production mainly caused by drought. 

The first shipments are expected to arrive this month as the country turns to global suppliers to stabilize local market prices.

The government is working on an export strategy to further accelerate the country's goods and services shipments, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has said. He said the ministry is working on a 'very' targeted manner to take the exports to $ 2 trillion by 2030 by addressing concerns of exporters and identifying areas of India's competitive advantages and strengths.

 

Agriculture minister Shivaraj Singh Chouhan on Saturday reviewed various schemes with state agriculture ministers and sought their suggestions on ongoing programmes and budget allocation ahead of the Union Budget. During a virtual meeting, Chouhan expressed satisfaction over the agriculture and allied sector's likely higher growth rate of 3.5-4 per cent in the 2024-25 fiscal year, and urged state governments to work at a 'faster pace', according to an official statement.

 

The Ministry of Commerce is eyeing 20 key nations to boost exports of goods and services from India.

Senior officials from the commerce ministry, and commercial wings of Indian Missions of 20 countries are holding a three-day meet from today (6 January) to discuss ways to promote exports of goods and services to devise strategies for boosting exports of goods and services.

 

The Uttar Pradesh government is drafting a new export policy to boost the state’s share in India’s exports. The move aims to provide additional incentives to exporters.

 In the last financial year (FY24), UP’s merchandise exports were worth nearly $20.67 billion, contributing 4.71 per cent to India’s total exports. With the new policy, the government targets to increase this share to 7.5 per cent, a senior official said. For the first six months of FY25, the state logged exports worth $10.56 billion, raising its share in the country's total exports to 4.89 per cent.

 

The Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan has urged all states to intensify their efforts under the National Mission on Edible Oils - Oil Palm (NMEO-OP). This mission serves as a cornerstone of India’s vision to achieve self-sufficiency in edible oil production, reduce dependence on imports and enhance farmer incomes.

 

Economic growth may have sped up following the slowdown in the September quarter, with business activity showing signs of improvement in the third quarter, economists said. However, growth for the year is expected to remain subdued, they added, putting it below FY24's 8.2%.

 

Another 27,000 tons of boiled rice are coming from India in the second shipment. The vessel carrying the rice is expected to arrive at the Chittagong port on January 10.

Mohammad Shahid Uddin Mahmud, Sub-Controller of the Chittagong Shipping and Preservation Control Office, confirmed this information.