Photo used for illustration purpose only.
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

India’s goods exports dropped 9.32% to $34.71 billion in August, while the import bill expanded 3.3% to $64.36 billion.

The trade deficit widened to a ten-month high of $29.65 billion, reckoned to be the second highest monthly gap in goods trade.

“Gold imports more than doubled from $4.9 billion a year ago to $10.06 billion this August. Trade deficit should not be a matter of concern for a developing economy and you should not compare the deficits of developed countries with fast growing countries like India,” said Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal.

“To the extent there are no foreign exchange issues, it should not matter,” he asserted.

On the spike in gold imports, Trade Ministry officials said “Gold prices have declined globally and there has also been an import duty cut. Moreover, this is the time of the year that jewellers start stocking up for the festive and wedding season.”

“The decline in value of petroleum products with oil prices dropping six dollars was a key factor for lower petroleum exports while gems and jewellery exports have been impacted by the sanctions imposed due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict that has made it difficult to procure rough diamonds,” the Commerce Secretary said.

“However, the performance of our non gems and jewellery and non petroleum exports gives us comfort that despite the clouds of uncertainty hovering globally, India is still a bright spot,” he noted.

“While the decline in petroleum prices is good for the oil import bill, which stood at $11.01 billion in August, it hurts the value of petroleum exports,” he said.

India’s trade with China has declined in the first half of 2023 after more than two years of record growth. Image used for representation purpose only. File
| Photo Credit: K.K. Mustafah

India’s trade with China declined in the first half of 2023 after more than two years of record growth, part of a broader slump in China’s trade performance that has underlined a sharp slowdown in the world’s second-largest economy

Two-way trade reached $66.02 billion in the first half, data from China’s General Administration of Customs (GAC) showed on Thursday. India’s imports from China slid 0.9% to $56.53 billion, while exports to its northern neighbour fell by 0.6% to $9.49 billion.

India’s imports of Chinese goods were $57.51 billion in the first half of 2022.

However, India’s trade deficit — the largest it has with any country — did not narrow substantially because exports to China also declined due to weak demand. The January-June trade stood at $47.04 billion, marginally narrower than H1 2022’s $47.94 billion.

China’s overall H1 exports declined by 12.4%, a drop that exceeded most economists’ expectations. The trade slump is expected to reinforce concerns that China’s brief recovery, after emerging in January from three months of harsh COVID-19 curbs, is already running out of steam.

India’s trade with China in 2023 may see a rare decline after years of breakneck growth, with the first year of the pandemic being an exception. Trade rebounded to historic highs in 2021 and 2022. In 2022, trade reached a record $135.98 billion, driven by a 21% rise in imports into India. The trade deficit crossed $100 billion for the first time last year. India’s biggest imports from China have included active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), chemicals, machinery, auto components, and medical supplies.