International Purchase
International Purchase
For a growing economy like India’s, achieving selfsufficiency should be the goal but not at the cost of imports.
Importing is an essential economic function which cannot be completely eliminated. Ricardo’s principle of comparative advantage states that it would be beneficial for an economy to concentrate on the production of items in which it specialises, export these items and import its requirement of other items. The principle, though not totally practical, cannot be dismissed. International trade is undoubtedly governed by political motives and, as such, a country cannot totally rely on another country for its requirements of specific items. It would be equally fruitless to undertake
import substitution at any cost.
The Government of India роfrom time to time reviews the import policies considering various aspects such as trade balance, raw material Recently the import policy has been liberalised, as shortage of raw materials has led to underutilisation of capacity. In some cases, automatic licences will be issued to
cut down procedural delays. Import policies as such are not static and changes in policies and procedures are very important to industries which depend on imports for their production Procedure.
If a company is importing for the first time, the first and foremost step for it would be to check whether the item is allowed to be imported. This information will be available
in the Red (Blue) book. If the item is banned for imports (on the ground that it is indigenously available), the starting point is to get a list of all local manufacturers and ask for quotations. If the manufacturers are not in a position to supply, then a written statement to that effect should be
obtained from them. These statements should be presented to the Government to get the clearance for imports. The
government, on its part, might give names of some more possible suppliers or could write to the suppliers themselves and then possibly clear the import of the items. Companies can get import entitlements on the exports even if they be
indirect In case the import clearance is obtained or the item is not banned for imports, a company has to go through the
following stages to accomplish the purchase:
1. Locating the foreign source of supply. This has to be done by contacting the Ministry of Trade, Foreign Consulates and Embassies, Indian Consulates in foreign countries, etc. A foreign consulate or embassy has a commercial attache who is well versed with the list of suppliers in his country
2. Procurement of the item. At this stage the importer will be involved with foreign source of supply, manufacturing unit of his company, engineering department and
governmental institutions like DGTD, MMTC and STC.
3. Documentation. Special documents, not used for indigenous purchases, are required. The commonly used documents are: (a) Bill of lading, (b) Invoices, (c) Certificate
of origin, (d) Weight certificates, (e) Insurance policy,
(1)Markings of packages.Pricing Strategies Price is an important element of marketing-mix. Price is the exchange value. Developing a right pricing strategy is critical to an organizations success. Price is a significant variable, as in many cases, it is the main factor affecting consumer choice. Its significance is further emphasized as it is the only element of marketing mix that generates revenues and the others produce costs.
Pricing Strategy. Pricing strategy refers to a plan of action designed to attain pricing objectives. Pricing strategy differs from pricing method, A pricing method helps to calculate and fix the prices on the bases of costs, competitors’ pricing, etc. Pricing method is a part of pricing strategy There are several pricing strategies. The exporter may adopt a particular strategy at the time of launching the product in the overseas market. The exporter has to adopt pricing strategies during the lifetime of the product. The exporter should constantly review the pricing strategy adopted by his firm.If required, the exporter may switch over from one strategy to another.