Page 9 - Plastics News April 2019

FROM THE EDITOR'S PEN

‘It’s Minimal or No effect’ - speculations continue on

withdrawal of GSP status

he Office of the United States Trade Representative has said that United States would
Tterminate India’s designation as beneficiary developing country under the GSP programme
because it no longer complied with the statutory eligibility criteria. The announcement has
triggered to many speculations and the Indian industry is quite apprehensive for there would
be a cascading effect. Though the commerce secretary Anup Wadhwan has said that the
move might have its affect on India-US trade, however, its impact on Indian exports would be
‘minimal’. While a section of the industry acknowledges it, our friends from the industry do
not for the move by the United States (U.S.) to terminate India’s designation as beneficiary
developing country under the (GSP) programme is likely to affect plastic exports from India.

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. 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 house-ware
items and polyester films. The figures say so as well. In 2018, India and the U.S. reported
a bilateral trade (only merchandise goods) worth $84.9 billion, up 20% from the previous Mr. Rajiv B.Tolat
year. The trade was in favour of India, which reported a surplus of $17.9 billion during 2018,
down 15.1% from $21.1 billion a year earlier. Overall the programme allows export of 1900
products from sectors such as chemicals and engineering worth $5.6 billion from India to
enter the US duty free
Interestingly, two of US senators have urged the Trump administration to delay decision on
preferential trade status until the end of the general elections, for scrapping India's trade
privileges could hit US consumers, the senators, John Cornyn and Mark Warner wrote in their
letter. Whatever be the case the withdrawal will become applicable only after 60 days of
the issue of a notification on the same and would affect India-US trade for sure. Hope better
commerce sense prevails.
Worlds’ first plastic-free compostable ‘lolly pack’

In another happening London-based Lickalix has announced that it has become “the first
iced-treat company in the world to introduce plastic free, compostable packaging. The
lolly packaging can be composted in a food waste bin and will decompose within 12 weeks,
compared to the 400 years it takes plastic to breakdown. The packaging will also be marine
compostable which means that the packaging will organically decompose if it ends up in
the ocean, harming no wildlife. World over food retailers are under increasing pressure, to
reduce the amount of plastic packaging and food waste that is being consumed and thrown
out, with specific emphasis on single-use plastic. The company is aiming to demonstrate to
the frozen category that plastic-free alternatives exist and can be successfully used.

Rajiv B.Tolat
Hon. Editor
publication@aipma.net

9 April 2019 Plastics News