by admin | May 25, 2021 | Business, Corporate, Corporate Governance, Economy, Investing, Medium Enterprise, News, Politics, SMEs
Tokyo : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday invited Japanese businessmen to engage more with India to speed up the investment process in New Delhi.
“I always talk about ‘strong India strong Japan’. On this occasion, I express my gratitude towards Japanese businessmen to show their faith in India. I invite you all to engage with India to speed up investment process there,” Modi said while interacting at the Business Forum Summit here.
Modi, who arrived here on Saturday for his annual bilateral summit with his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe, said: “Some years ago, I spoke about making a mini-Japan in India. It’s a matter of great happiness for me that today, you are working in an even larger number in India.”
The Indian Prime Minister thanked the Japanese government and companies, saying: “Our Delhi-Mumbai industrial corridor project is also moving forward,” because of Japan’s collaboration with India.
He said that under the ‘Make in India’ initiative, India has the potential to become a manufacturing hub.
“I have always kept ease of doing business as my priority. India was at 140th position in the ‘ease of doing business’ ranking of the World Bank when he took over the responsibility of the government in 2014. Now India has reached 100th position and we are working towards better ranking,” Modi added.
This is Modi’s third visit to Japan for the summit and his 12th meeting with Abe since 2014.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Opinions
By Frank Islam,
In the first week of October, President Donald Trump donated $100,000 — one quarter of his annual salary for this year — to the Small Business Administration. This money is to be used in a training program to help veterans make the transition to the private sector.
President Trump’s donation should be viewed as a generous gesture. It could also be seen as an indication, as SBA administrator Linda McMahon stated in announcing the award, that “he clearly understands the value of small business.”
Unfortunately, Trump’s proposed SBA budget for FY 2019 provides evidence to the contrary. It cuts the agency’s total funding by 5.9% and its federal funding by 25%, with the difference to be made up by fees to be paid by lending partners and SBA money left over from prior years.
These proposed cuts tell the real story of Trump’s understanding. He clearly does not recognize how critical and central small businesses are to the performance of the American economy. If he did, he would be increasing the SBA’s budget rather than decreasing it.
Because of their ubiquitous presence across this country and the contributions they make, small businesses warrant governmental investments rather than reductions. Here are some facts.
In its 2018 Small Business Profile, the SBA’s Office of Advocacy reports: There were over 30 million small businesses (over 99% of U.S. businesses) employing almost 59 million people (47.5% of U.S. employees). Of the 30 million+ small businesses, 5.8+ million had 1–499 employees with almost 90% of those businesses employing 1–20 individuals. 24.3+ million businesses are non-employer firms.
It’s not just the large numbers that matter. Small businesses make a big difference. Various research shows that: small businesses represent 96% of employer firms in high patent manufacturing industries; small firms are much more likely to develop emerging technologies than large firms; and, on an annual basis small businesses account for well over 60% of all new jobs created in the United States.
The Great Recession hit America business hard. It hit small businesses especially hard, and it has taken them much longer to recover than their big business counterparts. During and because of the Recession:
- Jobs fell 40%, constituting 60% of the total private sector job loss
- From 2009–2013, business start-ups declined to an average of 550,000 annually vs 620,000 in the period from 1998–2007
- In the period from 2008–2012, small business loans on bank balance sheets went down by 20%, compared to a 4% increase in loans to larger businesses in the same timeframe
As we noted in a 2016 blog, various studies showed that small businesses continued to have difficulty getting loans through 2015. A September 2017 Report to the Congress on the Availability of Credit to Small Businesses, prepared by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, concluded:
Overall, between 2012 and 2017, credit conditions for small businesses were largely stable. Favorable supply conditions prevailed throughout most of the period, coupled with weak loan demand from small business owners. By 2017, credit flows to small businesses had improved, though they remained below their pre-crisis levels.
The bottom line going into 2018 is that, while there was still a little lag and some concern, conditions have started to turn around for small business over the past several years. Studies this year indicate that condition continue to get better and small business owners are bullish on the economy. For example:
- The biannual Bank of America Small Business Owner Report released in April showed “confidence in the economy — both at the national and local levels — is the highest it’s been since 2015 and the second highest in the history of the report.”
- The quarterly Wells Fargo/Gallup Index released for the third quarter of 2018 showed “U.S. small business owners’ optimism at record high.”
- The monthly National Federation of Independent Business Optimism Index report for August “soared to 108.8, a new record in the survey’s 45-year history, topping the July 1983 highwater mark of 108.”
Each of these studies showed businesses ready to grow, invest and to hire new employees. In other words, they are poised to get back on the playing field in a major way.
So, at this point, is it sufficient to just let mother nature, market forces and capitalism take its course? We believe not. That’s because due to the disappearance of smaller local lending institutions during and after the recession, and the recent rapid consolidation of industries, big businesses still have a distinct advantage in today’s world.
Small businesses need assistance to level the playing field. The government can provide that assistance.
In this regard, it is heartening to know that on September 25, the House passed nine bipartisan small business bills. These bills called for support to small business in areas such as improving access to capital, expanding governmental contracting opportunities, and enhancing innovation protection.
These bills have advanced to the Senate for consideration by its Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee. Time will tell which, if any, will be brought to and passed by the full Senate and be sent to the President’s desk to be signed and become the law of the land.
What we can tell right now is that it is time–past time, in fact — for the government to increase its investment in small businesses. They are the bedrock of the American economy nationwide.
Unlike building a wall or strengthening the military, they bring something to the table for everyone. Investing in them yields dividends that transcend politics and presidential ideologies.
Small businesses make America great and help it win big. That’s the leadership mindset America needs today.
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Branding, Business, Commodities, Commodities News, Commodity Market, Finding Customers, Investing, Large Enterprise, Marketing Basics, Markets, Networking, Online Marketing, Technology
San Francisco : Amazon on Tuesday announced a new investment of $10 million in Closed Loop Fund (CLF) to support recycling infrastructure in the US aimed at cutting the amount of waste treated at landfills.
Amazon said its investment will increase the availability of curbside recycling for three million homes in communities across the country, making it easier for customers to recycle and further develop end markets for recycled commodities, Xinhua reported.
The funds will help “divert one million tons of recyclable material from landfill into the recycling stream and eliminate the equivalent of 2 million metric tons of CO2 by 2028 — equivalent to shutting down a coal-fired power plant for six months,” the company said.
The CLF was founded in 2014 to invest in companies and organisations working on services, infrastructure or technology that aimed to provide more accessible recycling service to American communities, when about half of Americans today lack access to convenient, sufficient curbside recycling at their homes.
“This investment will help build the local capabilities needed to make it easier for our customers and their communities to recycle and to increase the amount of material recycled across the country,” said Dave Clark, Amazon’s Senior Vice President of Worldwide Operations.
The CLF hopes that over the next 10 years, it could help eliminate more than 16 million tons of greenhouse gas, divert more than 8 million cumulative tons of waste from landfills, improve recycling for more than 18 million households, and save nearly 60 million dollars for American cities.
“Amazon’s investment in Closed Loop Fund is another example of how recycling is good business in America… we hope their leadership drives other brands and retailers to follow suit,” said CEO of Closed Loop Fund Ron Gonen.
As one of the world’s largest e-commerce companies, Amazon packages produce a massive amount of cardboard and packaging waste every year, and the company shipped more than 5 billion items for its members of the Amazon Prime service in 2017.
Amazon has been enforcing the Frustration-Free Packaging program since 2008, which has eliminated over 500 million boxes and more than 244,000 tons of packaging materials over the past 10 years.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Investing, World
Kathmandu : Nepal and China have agreed to facilitate joint investment in the power sector, according to a joint statement issued by both sides after a meeting here.
The meeting of the Nepal-China Joint Implementation Mechanism was conducted on Friday as a stepping stone to implement the Memorandum of Understanding on Energy Cooperation signed by the energy ministers of both countries during the visit of Nepali Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli to China in June, the Himalayan Times reported on Saturday.
According to the joint statement, both sides introduced their power systems, investment prospects, power markets, future plans among others to make both sides familiar with each other’s power system.
The joint statement said that during the meeting, possible energy collaboration and the possibility of developing cross-border interconnection were also discussed.
Dinesh Ghimire, a spokesperson at Nepal’s Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation (MoEWRI), told Xinhua news agency that the two sides agreed to prepare a power system cooperation plan once the Nepali and Chinese authorities give the go-ahead.
“A joint working group will be formed to prepare the plan,” Ghimire said, adding that the plan will also involve the identification and selection of energy projects for joint development.
The Nepali team was led by Anup Kumar Upadhyay, secretary at MoEWRI, while the Chinese delegation was led by He Yang, an official at the National Energy Administration of China.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Commodity Market, Corporate, Corporate finance, Corporate Governance, Corporate Jobs, Employment, Investing, Private Jobs
Bhubaneswar : The Odisha government on Tuesday approved seven investment proposals worth Rs 7,416 crore, which will help create employment opportunities for 4,454 people.
The 80th meeting of the State Level Single Window Clearance Authority (SLSWCA) held under the chairmanship of Chief Secretary, Aditya Prasad Padhi, approved the proposals.
The investment proposals include steel, downstream industries in metals and minerals and plastics.
The SLSWCA accorded approval to a Hyderabad-based company to set up a manufacturing unit for pre-engineered building (PEB) including structural steel members at an investment of Rs 58 crore at Cuttack, said a release.
The plant’s production capacity will be 50,000 MT per annum and the project will create direct and indirect employment for 550 people. This will add value to the primary metal being produced in the state, it said.
A Kolkata-based company’s proposal to establish a manufacturing unit for Polypropelene (PP) woven bags at Paradip Plastic Park also received the government’s nod.
The unit will invest Rs 72 crore and create direct and indirect employment opportunities for 625 people.
The third proposal approved was of a Kolkata-based company which aims to set up a plant of 8,000 TPA capacity of ductile iron fittings at Kalinganagar Industrial Complex, Jajpur with a total investment of Rs 51 crore. The plant will create employment opportunities for 615 people, the release said.
A Ghaziabad-based company’s proposal to establish 0.3 Million Tonne Per Annum (MTPA) rolled and processed steel plant, 0.12 MTPA and an LPG cylinder manufacturing unit with capacity of 2,500 cylinders per annum was approved in the meeting.
The cumulative investment committed by the company was Rs 238 crore and this would create direct and indirect employment for 270 people.
The proposal of NALCO to set up an aluminium downstream unit to manufacture aluminium alloy wheel, aluminium foil, aluminium rolled products and aluminium extrusions near Kamakhyanagar, Dhenkanal with an investment of Rs 5,522 crore was recommended to High Level Clearance Authority headed by the Chief Minister, Naveen Patnaik, for final approval. This will create employment opportunities for 1,761 people.
The sixth proposal approved in the meeting belonged to a Kolkata-based group which proposed to set up a 4 MTPA iron ore pelletisation plant at Dhenkanal with an investment of Rs 625 crore. This large project shall create employment opportunities for 167 people.
The same group’s other proposal to set up a 4 MTPA iron ore beneficiation plant at Sundargarh and laying of 200 KM iron ore slurry pipeline in Dhenkanal at an investment of Rs 850 crore also received approval. This project will create direct and indirect employment for 466 people.
—IANS
