ICCC Newsletter...1 | P a g e ICCC Newsletter August 2015 From the President’s desk Summer is a time to take a break, recharge ourselves and prepare for a new beginning. However,

August 2015

ICCC Newsletter

Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce 924 The East Mall, Etobicoke ON M9B 6K1

1 | P a g e

ICCC Newsletter August 2015

From the President’s desk

Summer is a time to take a break, recharge ourselves and prepare for a new beginning. However, for the new team that now helms the Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce (ICCC), summer has been business as usual. No break for us. My colleagues on the board have been geared to make 2015-16 a meaningful year for the members and stakeholders of our august organization.

And in pursuance of this objective, we have appointed a new director – Shivani Sharma-Gupta, who will be looking after our events portfolio, and will be working in tandem with Jagdish Bajaj, Vice President, Programs and Events, to make our events meaningful. Shivani has tremendous experience in events planning. In addition, we have also created a brand new portfolio of Tourism and Hospitality, and my colleague Ajay Tandon, has been given an additional charge of this portfolio besides Affinity Programs. Ajay, too, is a veteran in the travel and hospitality sector.

In another major initiative, we have appointed new committee chairs to the various ICCC committees. While I don’t believing in blowing my own trumpet, in all modesty, I would like to point out that never before have committee heads been appointed within a month of the new board taking charge of the Chamber’s affairs. The speed with which we have put in place the basic structure of the Chamber is to ensure that we hit the ground running in fulfilling ICCC’s mandate in full measure. We want to focus on the small entrepreneur and the professional and help him / her by creating concrete opportunities. Our committee chairs will be our pivot in strategizing plans that will help us in achieving these goals. See the announcement here: New Appointments at ICCC

When I took charge of our beloved Chamber as its President, I had pledged to provide a new thrust to the operations of the Chamber and to ensure that the institution refocuses on its core values. I am acutely aware that this onerous task cannot be completed without the help and support of our members and stakeholders. I seek your support. I want to hear from you. Write to me at [email protected]; let’s rebuild this Chamber and take it to where it rightfully belongs.

Your truly Sanjay

Sanjay Makkar

Article

“Best is yet to come…” Bhim D. Asdhir of Excel Funds discusses investing in Emerging Markets

“To invest in emerging markets, you have to be on the ground in those countries, and we

did that early on. And we’ve partnered with the ‘who’s who’ of sub-advisors in emerging

markets,” Bhim D. Asdhir shares his vision of the Emerging Markets and attributes his

company’s success to the compelling story told by numbers, and the fact that he had the

conviction to follow them where ever it led him despite the fact that everyone told him he

was wrong.

Today, 20 years later he is an industry icon, a pioneer, and the authority on Emerging

Markets. Using the strength of the combined experience of premium on-the-ground sub-

advisors like Amundi (the PIMCO of Europe), Birla Sun Life, Barings Asset Management

just to name a few, Excel Funds has achieved sustained above-average performance. Excel

Funds uses well-developed proprietary models for asset allocation and portfolio holdings

to obtain higher performance results. The best is yet to come! ..... Read more from him

and his successful India story (link to our website for Wealth Professional Magazine

Interview)

Bhim Asdhir of Excel Funds

1 | P a g e

Economic trends

Jobs, income and the loonie: The Conference Board of Canada’s July 2015 report

predicts trouble on three key fronts: Jobs, pay and the Canadian currency.

Unemployment is forecast to inch up – from 6.8 per cent at present to 7 per cent later in

2015

Real disposable income will be “slightly better,” rising by 2.3 per cent, given soft inflation,

the federal government’s new child care benefits scheme and income-splitting. Next year,

however, real disposable income gains are forecast to slow to 1.5 per cent as oil prices rise.

The Conference Board did not weigh in with an actual projection for the loonie, but it did

note that the lower currency should help exports “manage some decent growth.” While a

TD Bank projection states, “A softer commodity price outlook and a larger interest-rate

differential versus the U.S. also spell more bad news ahead for the loonie,” the Conference

Board, forecast that a lower currency would help Canada’s real trade balance will see

marked gains.

Trans-Pacific Partnership – Talks fail: The world economy could be $300 billion

poorer after the failure of the latest Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) talks in Hawaii. With

time running out to salvage a deal, the U.S.-led trade pact risks becoming stalled

indefinitely, handing the initiative to China’s rival grouping (Shanghai Cooperation

Council) and reducing the prospect of much-needed productivity gains. Hopes of a

breakthrough were high when negotiators from the 12 TPP nations met late July in Hawaii

to seek agreement after five years of talks.

Comprising Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand,

Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam, the grouping encompasses 40 percent

of world gross domestic product (GDP) and a quarter of global exports, with a successful

TPP potentially representing the world’s biggest trade accord in more than a decade. The

Hawaii talks reportedly stalled over a range of issues, including auto, dairy and sugar

exports, along with a proposed monopoly period for next-generation drugs. After

claiming earlier that a deal was “98 percent complete,” Australia’s Trade Minister Andrew

Robb blamed the United States, Japan, Canada and Mexico for frustrating a final

agreement.

2 | P a g e

July 2015 ACTIVITIES

July 21, 2015 Go Global India Workshop

Mr. Sanjay Makkar, president ICCC participated in ‘Go Global India’ workshop. International Trade Minister Ed Fast, was the keynote speaker at the workshop. In a discussion with president Makkar, Minister Fast briefed regarding the ongoing CEPA negotiations with India. Canada has concluded free trade agreements with 38 countries and negotiations with India are in its final stage. The Government of Canada is committed to providing Canadian businesses, especially small and medium sized enterprises, with the tools and the support to allow them to realize their full export potential.

July 22, 2015 Meeting with Mayor Bonnie Crombie

3 | P a g e

ICCC President Mr. Makkar met Mayor Bonnie Crombie with other board members. Mr.

Makkar expressed confidence that ICCC will succeed in channelizing synergies between

the Chamber and Mississauga, especially on areas of common business interest.

Emphasizing the need to tap the burgeoning growth of Mississauga-based Indo-Canadian

small businesses, he said, the Chamber’s India Missions have become a catalyst for local

businesses to expand their horizons and forge linkages with small entrepreneurs in India.

The board members who were present at the interaction included Mr. Sanjay Makkar,

President, ICCC; Mr. Jagdish Bajaj, Vice President, Programs & Events; Mr. Arun

Srivastava, Vice President, Finance & Sponsorship; Mr. Ajay Tandon, Director, Affinity;

Mr. Kanwar Dhanjal, Director, SME & Trade; Mr. Abu Becker, Director, Membership; Mr.

Pappur Shankar, Director, Mining and Energy.

July 23, 2015

17th Annual Golf Classic

The team led by Ajit

Someshwar, the

former President of

Indo-Canada

Chamber of

Commerce (ICCC)

and the national

convenor of the

Canada-India

Foundation (CIF),

won the ICCC 17th

Annual Golf Classic

held the Piper Heath

Golf Club in Hornby,

ON, on Thursday,

July 23, 2014.

Sanjay Makkar,

President, ICCC, while presenting Someshwar and his team with a rotating trophy,

acknowledged the dedicated hard work put in by ICCC’s Golf Committee, and thanked the

enthusiastic band of 152 golfers who participated in the tourney. The Golf Committee

comprises of Anil Shah (Chair), Rahul Mehta, Pradeep Sood, Tavinder Malhotra and

Vikram Dua.

4 | P a g e

July 29, 2015

Volunteer Appreciation Dinner

Volunteers with ICCC board members

The Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce (ICCC) felicitated its volunteers at a Volunteers’

Night on July 29th 2015 at ICCC headquarters in Toronto. The event was attended by over

30 volunteers and the board of directors of the Chamber. The ICCC is privileged to have

always had unstinting support of a legion of volunteers who have helped accomplish a

large part of the Chamber’s mandate. “Volunteers are the backbone of ICCC and

volunteering is a big tradition in Canada, and we at the Chamber have adopted it since

the Chamber’s inception in 1977,” Sanjay Makkar, President, ICCC said during his

welcome remarks.

5 | P a g e

Tender notice

1 Lease of helicopter tender- India

www.pawanhans.co.in / www.tenderwizard.com/PAWANHANS

2 Global tender

Miniature depth logger (quantity -06 set)

CTD data logger (quantity -02 set)

http://www.drdo.org & http://www.tender.gov.in

3 Tender for coal bunker level monitoring system – strain gauge type -

RFQ No. ILN0000245

www.bheledn.com , www.bhel.com, www.tender.gov.in

6 | P a g e

UPCOMING EVENTS

Let's Talk Money-BDC – 10 September 2015

For details please see www.iccconline.org

ICCC in news

http://southasiandaily.com/community/mississauga-mayor-crombie-keen-to-expand-ties-

with-india/

FOR ADVERTISEMENT IN NEWSLETTER Please contact Mr. Pawan Chankotra at [email protected], or by calling 416-224-0090 BECOME A MEMBER

Membership is open to any person who is in agreement with the objectives of the Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce.

The present membership represents a wide range of industries and professions.

The benefits of joining the ICCC include:

Professional and personal development through business and social networking Exposure to business and professional opportunities in Canada, India and

around the world Tickets to events at discounted member rates Invitations to selected free business programs An annual magazine Annual membership directory Opportunity to serve on various committees and be elected to the Board of

Directors Benefits through the Chamber's Affinity Program

To join ICCC as member please click here

7 | P a g e

Know your Organization

Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce is a 38-year-old organization with twin objectives of fostering bilateral trade between Canada and India and creating entrepreneurial and professional opportunities for Indo-Canadians. It is run by an elected board with the help of various committees involving member.

To know more about your organization, please visit: www.iccconline.org

SUGGESTIONS Your board is committed to make this esteemed organization member friendly, open, transparent, and truly a business organization working to achieve its mission and vision. Board is considering of: i) Publishing achievements of members in the upcoming issues of ICCC newsletter. Therefore, members are advised to send their achievements such as new position, additional qualification, awards etc. at [email protected]. ii) Publishing articles on different topics involving trade, commerce, tax etc. Interested writers can send their articles (500 words) at [email protected] iii) Starting blogs on Chamber's website. Send your resumes and subjects you wish to write a blog. iv) Constituting a newsletter committee. Those who have flare of writing, designing and passionate about this, send in their resumes at [email protected] Board is there to steer this august body in the direction provided by articles and by-laws and ensuring that interest of various stakeholders is protected. Board invites your suggestions and opinions regarding future events, newsletter content, and ask you to get engaged more and more and participate in Chamber events. You are the true ambassador of Chamber and your board is working for you in. Please feel free in contacting any board member. Please feel free in sending your suggestions and recommendations at: [email protected] or [email protected].

8 | P a g e

Follow us on social media:

Facebook

LinkedIn

Twitter

Google+

Flickr YouTube DISCLAIMER The above material is compiled by Chamber and is being used solely for its membership. Any unauthorized use of this newsletter and its contents are strictly prohibited.

9 | P a g e

Annual Sponsors

Media Partners