The government on Wednesday imposed import restrictions on certain gold jewelery and articles, a move that is expected to cut imports of non-essential items and help control the trade deficit. Now the importer will need license permission from the government to import these gold products. However, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said that there would be no restriction on imports under the India-UAE Free Trade Agreement.
In a notification, the DGFT said that the import policy of these products has been revised from “free to restricted with immediate effect”. Imports of pearls, precious and semi-precious stones declined by 25.36 per cent to nearly US$ 4 billion during April-May in the current fiscal. Gold imports also declined by nearly 40 percent to US$4.7 billion during the same period.
During April-May in the current financial year, total merchandise imports declined by 10.24 per cent to USD 107 billion. The merchandise trade deficit for April-May 2023 stood at US$ 37.26 billion as against US$ 40.48 billion during April-May 2022.
Some gold jewelery imports in April-May this financial year exceeded USD 110 million and were mainly imported from countries like UAE, Indonesia and the US.
“However, the government’s move is to balance macroeconomics. Gold and raw material for gems and jewelery should be available at reasonable prices,” said Colin Shah, MD, Cama Jewelery and former chairman of the Gems and Jewelery Export Promotion Council. Industries to maintain a competitive edge for exports.
(With inputs from PTI)
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