India’s goods exports up 9.1% to $38.13 billion in May, but merchandise trade deficit jumps to $23.78 billion

India's exports rise 9.1% to $38.13 billion in May, with hopes for continued growth and reduced trade deficit.

India’s goods exports grew 9.1% to $38.13 billion in May, while imports rose 7.7% to $61.91 billion, Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal said on June 14, stressing that things are looking more optimistic for trade this year, with even sectors like textiles recording healthy growth (up 9.8%) after months of sluggishness.

“We hope this trend should continue this year and also hope that there should be no more geopolitical conflicts and no more disruptions in major global shipping routes,” Mr. Barthwal said. He highlighted that several products, including engineering goods, electronics (22.97%), drugs and pharma products (10.45%), and plastics and linoleum (16%), witnessed double-digit growth in exports in May.

Despite exports growing faster than imports in May, the merchandise trade deficit surged to a seven-month high of $23.78 billion, which was also 5.5% higher than that recorded in the same month a year ago.

In April, India’s merchandise exports rose 1.07% to $35 billion, but the import bill jumped 10.25% to $54.1 billion, thanks to a surge in global oil and gold prices, lifting the trade deficit to a four-month high of $19.1 billion.