Page 44 - Plastics News April 2019
P. 44

Business news



          Indevco to invest $9.5M in Texas,                      U.S. withdraws  GSP program

          create new jobs                                        move likely to affect India’s
                                                                 plastics exports
           ndevco  Plastics  Inc.  Flexible packaging  producer    is
         Iexpanding again. It will add $9.5 million in capital      he  Office  of  the
         investment and 18 new jobs over the next three years at   TUnited  States
         its plant on Jordan Valley Road, according to newspaper   Trade Representative
         partners the Longview News Journal.LEDCO awarded        on March 4 issued a
         Indevco Plastics a $400,000 performance grant Friday    press release stating
         to aid in the expansion plan. “Indevco definitely made   that United States
         the right decision in opening a manufacturing facility in   would terminate
         Longview,” said Wayne Mashe, general manager of Indevco   India’s designation
         Plastics.Meanwhile, other Longview companies with prior   as  benef iciar y
         performance agreements with LEDCO are exceeding their   developing country
         initial goals, President/CEO Wayne Mansfield said. ‘A skills   under   the  GSP
         issue’ When Dollar General Corp. agreed to build its nearly   programme because
         1 million-square-foot distribution center in the North   it no longer complied
         Longview Business Park in late 2017, it signed a more than   with the statutory eligibility criteria. The move by the
         $7 million incentive agreement that required the company   United States (U.S.) to terminate India’s designation as
         to average 100 full-time employees this year and reach at   beneficiary developing country under the Generalized
         least 400 workers by the end of 2023. So far, there are 430   System of Preferences (GSP) programme because it no
         employees already working at the distribution center with   longer complied with the statutory eligibility criteria,
         two months remaining until it opens, Mansfield told LEDCO
                                                                 is likely to affect plastic exports from India according
                                                                 to Plexconcil. “At the Plastic Export Promotion Council
                                                                 (Plexconcil), we conducted an analysis and found that
                                                                 in India's case, the GSP concessions extended by the
                                                                 U.S. amounted to a duty reduction of $30 million per
                                                                 annum on imports of plastic products worth $600 million
                                                                 for the period January to December 2018,” said Ravish
                                                                 Kamath, chairman, Plexconcil. He said some of the
                                                                 product segments which may face a decline in exports
                                                                 to U.S. due to withdrawal of GSP concessions include
                                                                 plastics raw materials, consumer and houseware items
                                                                 and polyester films. Sribash Dasmohapatra, executive
         board members Friday. He predicts the facility could soon   director, Plexconcil said, “We feel that the withdrawal
         reach 600 workers with average wages rising to about $16   of GSP benefits would negatively impact the exports of
         an hour by the end of 2019. Elsewhere, MG Foods currently   Plexconcil member-exporters to the U.S. and we have
         is at 134 employees at its Longview facility, which is almost   requested the Union Commerce Ministry to engage
         30 workers more than the 105-employee goal the company   in discussions with the U.S. to allow continuation of
         set in its ongoing performance agreement with LEDCO,    GSP and or incentivise exporters through some other
         Mansfield said. INDEVCO Group (Industrial Development   measure as they may deem appropriate.” In 2018,
         Company), an international group of manufacturing       India and the U.S. reported a bilateral trade (only
         companies, manufactures corrugated, plastic and paper   merchandise goods) worth $84.9 billion, up 20% from
         packaging, tissue, as well as household, institutional, and   the  previous  year.The  trade  was  in  favour  of  India,
         personal care disposables. The group, headquartered in   which reported a surplus of $17.9 billion during 2018,
         Ajaltoun,  Lebanon,  operates  in  over  65  countries  and   down 15.1% from $21.1 billion a year earlier.
         employs around 9400 people in 60 companies.


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