Import of foodgrains,milk products up 15.8%

Items such as foodgrains,automobiles,milk and beverages fall in the sensitive category and these imports are monitored by the government to see if there is any adverse impact on the domestic industry.

Milk and dairy products’ import increased to Rs 455 crore and that of automobiles to Rs 1,005 crore during the first half of of the current financial year from Rs 119.8 crore and Rs 510 crore,respectively in the year-ago period.

During April-September 2010-11,imports of items such as alcoholic beverages and rubber too,increased by 51.6 per cent and 78.2 per cent,respectively.

As per the data,the increase in imports of edible oil was 12.3 per cent to Rs 1,3287.4 crore. Products of small-scale industries like umbrella,locks,toys and glassware imports,too,went up by 48.5 per cent to Rs 709 crore over the year-ago period.

“The increase in edible oil import is mainly due to substantial increase in import of soya-bean crude oil,” it said.

However,imports of pulses,and cotton and silk contracted by 5.5 per cent and 19.3 per cent during the period.

Food inflation shot up to nearly a year’s high of 18.32 per cent on December 25,due to spurt in vegetables,onion and milk prices.

Import of sensitive items amounted to 4.7 per cent of the country’s total imports during the period.

The gross import of all commodities during April-September 2010-11 was Rs 7,66,857 crore compared to Rs 6,22,295 crore in the same period last year.

Imports of sensitive items from countries like the US,UK,China,Korea,Argentina,Germany,Thailand,New Zealand have gone up,while those from Myanmar,Japan,Brazil and Canada decreased.