New Delhi: Santosh Sarangi, Director General Foreign Trade is happy as India’s merchandise exports for the fiscal year 2024-25 (April-March) reached a cumulative value of US$ 437.42 Billion, registering a modest positive growth of 0.08% compared to the US$ 437.07 Billion recorded in FY 2023-24.
DGFT, Shri Sarangi reviewed the export scenario in view of Tariff War. And the latest trade data released on 16 April.
While the overall growth remained marginal, the non-petroleum export sector emerged as a significant driver, showcasing a robust performance. Non-petroleum exports for FY 2024-25 valued at US$ 374.08 Billion, marking a substantial increase of 6.0% compared to the US$ 352.92 Billion in the previous fiscal year. This indicates a strengthening diversification of India’s export basket beyond petroleum products.
Several key sectors spearheaded this growth in non-petroleum exports. Notably, Electronic Goods recorded an impressive surge of 32.47%, climbing to US$ 38.58 Billion from US$ 29.12 Billion in FY 2023-24. Other significant contributors to the positive export growth include:
- Coffee: Increased by 40.37% to US$ 1.81 Billion.
- Tobacco: Increased by 36.53% to US$ 1.98 Billion.
- Rice: Increased by 19.73% to US$ 12.47 Billion.
- Jute Mfg. including Floor Covering: Increased by 13.35% to US$ 0.38 Billion.
- Meat, dairy & poultry products: Increased by 12.57% to US$ 5.1 Billion.
- Tea: Increased by 11.84% to US$ 0.92 Billion.
- Carpet: Increased by 10.46% to US$ 1.54 Billion.
- Plastic & Linoleum: Increased by 10.23% to US$ 8.92 Billion.
- RMG of all Textiles: Increased by 10.03% to US$ 15.99 Billion.
- Drugs & Pharmaceuticals: Increased by 9.39% to US$ 30.47 Billion.
- Cereal preparations & miscellaneous processed items: Increased by 8.71% to US$ 3.1 Billion.
- Mica, Coal & Other Ores, Minerals including processed minerals: Increased by 6.95% to US$ 5.01 Billion.
- Engineering Goods: Increased by 6.74% to US$ 116.67 Billion.
- Fruits & Vegetables: Increased by 5.67% to US$ 3.87 Billion.
The data highlights the resilience and growing competitiveness of several key manufacturing and agricultural sectors in the global market. The significant increase in electronic goods exports underscores India’s growing prowess in this high-value sector. The strong performance of agricultural and allied sectors like coffee, tobacco, rice, and meat & dairy products also contributed positively to the overall export figures.
While the marginal overall growth suggests some headwinds in the global trade environment, the robust performance of the non-petroleum sector provides a positive outlook for India’s export trajectory in the coming fiscal year.
Analysts believe that continued focus on diversification and value-added exports will be crucial for sustaining and accelerating export growth in the future.