Overview
- Exporters met RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra for two hours to seek a 12-month halt on principal and interest repayments and interest support on new credit.
- Industry bodies proposed a 2–2.5% export-credit sub-target within priority sector lending and a COVID-era ECLGS-style, government-guaranteed collateral-free facility for MSMEs.
- Requests included extending pre-shipment credit periods and export realisation timelines, plus designating EDPMS as the authoritative source to resolve payment data mismatches.
- Some participants sought RBI dollar sales at the rupee’s real effective exchange rate rather than the spot rate to bolster cash flows, according to people familiar with the talks.
- The U.S. tariff move exposes about $48 billion of Indian exports in labour-intensive sectors, while a Rs 2,250-crore Export Promotion Mission still awaits government approval.