The government is working on a new foreign trade policy (FTP) from April with the aim of achieving $1 trillion exports by 2030.

Senior commerce ministry officials said work on FTP is on: the document would present the government’s ‘’vision statement” on foreign trade, charting out the long-term goals and steps to encourage settlement in the rupee.

“There would be no big bang announcement on incentives as export sops are not compatible with WTO rules. The policy, however, will have a vision statement for future growth and various facilitating provisions in areas such as automation, IT enablement, trade facilitation, cost reduction, support for MSMEs, promotion of e-commerce, R&D and district export hubs.”

It is expected to have three new chapters — on e-commerce, districts as export hubs, and SCOMET (dual-use items used for civilian/industrial and military use).

The new policy could feature several facilitation plans to make it easier for companies to export, the officials said. These would include relaxation of procedures and paperwork — especially in seeking permits and licence renewals, removal of human interface and bolstering of automation on various aspects of the trade.

The industry is hoping for concrete measures from the policy to give a fillip to exports amid slowing global demand, including an overhaul of the duty remission scheme introduced last year and the levy of GST on global trade intermediaries.

Coming after Covid-19, the policy will lay stress on ensuring India’s greater integration with the global supply chain and reducing its logistics costs. The commerce ministry has set a target to bring down India’s elevated logistics costs to 8 per cent in five years from the current 13-14 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP).

The new policy, initially scheduled to be announced in 2020, has been postponed several times for various durations, mainly to tide over the uncertainties created by the pandemic. The government had been extending the previous FTP (2015–20) on a piecemeal basis.

Meanwhile, the seventh round of India-UK free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations is edging towards its final stages in London and is expected to conclude on a positive note, officials close to the discussion said on Thursday, reports PTI.

In store

■ Focus on facilitation to reduce costs

■ Document to have chapters on e-commerce and district hubs

■ Chapter also on dual-use items — civilian and industry use