India's trade deficit climbs to $18.71 billion, exports also rise
India's Commerce Ministry announced today that the country's merchandise trade deficit had grown to $18.71 billion in February 2024, up from $17.49 billion the previous month. This figure also represents an increase from the $16.57 billion deficit recorded in February 2023. Despite this, exports saw a significant rise of 11.9%, reaching an 11-month high of $41.40 billion, while imports increased by 12.2% year-on-year to hit $60.11 billion.
Exports reach 11-month high despite global challenges
Despite global challenges such as the Russia-Ukraine war, the Suez Canal conflict, and fluctuating commodity prices, India's export growth in February surpassed expectations. Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal stated that this was the highest export growth for goods and services in the last 11 months. He also expressed optimism about fiscal year 2023-24, predicting that overall exports would surpass the previous fiscal year's record figures.
Record-breaking exports
In the fiscal year 2022-23, India's merchandise exports amounted to $451.07 billion, with services exports reaching $325.33 billion. This brought the total exports to $776.40 billion, marking a 14.8% increase from the previous fiscal year. However, for the period between April 2023 and February 2024, India's trade deficit was recorded as $225.20 billion. This shows a decrease from the initial 11 months of 2022-23 which recorded a deficit of $245.94 billion.