GJEPC today met with top executives from ICBC Standard Bank in London to address the issue of consistent duty-free gold and silver supplies in outlying areas for small-scale exporters. Mr. Tom Kendall, MD, ICBC Standard Bank London; Mr. Ian Harris, Head Physical Precious Metals, ICBC Standard Bank London; and Mr. Avadhani Sanagaram of Resource Banking Consulting attended the meeting. Mr. Saunak Parikh, Convener, Banking Insurance & Taxation Sub-committee; Mr. Milan Chokshi, Director, Diamond India Ltd. (DIL); Mr. Nirakar Chand, CEO, DIL; and Mr. Sabyasachi Ray, Executive Director, GJEPC greeted them.
Mr. Ray delivered a detailed presentation explaining the size and ambition of the gem and jewellery sector, growth objectives, issues connected to precious metal supply scarcity, and expectations from nominated agencies/banks. Mr. Ray stated in his presentation that, in order to serve small-scale exporters, the nominated agency/banks should issue gold in multiples of 100g and silver in multiples of 10kg to exporters, in accordance with the Foreign Trade Policy (FTP). He pointed out that the large prices on gold make exports uncompetitive. He also advocated for consistent duty-free gold and silver supplies to be made accessible to exporters in remote places (other than major cities).
GJEPC praised ICBC Standard Bank‘s decade-long support for DIL, a GJEPC-nominated agency that serves 800 small and medium-sized exporters.