Current Trends in India’s Exports and Imports

During the current financial year (April-January), India’s total export was $217.7 billion while total import during the same period was $324.5 billion. In 2015-16, both imports and exports have been on declining trend mainly due to global slowdown. The trade deficit stands at $106.8 billion. Some important current facts are as follows:

• The merchandise trade (trade in commodities) had a 13.9% share in India’s GDP in 1991-92. It stood at 27% in 2004-05, and further went up to 41% in 2013-14. In 2014-15, merchandise trade is 37.1% of GDP.
• In 2013, India’s exports share in world merchandise exports was 1.7 per cent. The objective of taking it to a respectable figure of at least 4% of world trade in next five years still seems to be a distant dream. We note here that China’s share in world trade is around 11%.
• Gujarat and Maharashtra are two export dominating states of India.