Trade deficit shrinks; exports fall for sixth month in a row

 

Continuing its declining trend, India’s exports shrank by about 20.19 per cent in May to USD 22.34 billion, marking a fall for the sixth straight month.

The slump in exports is mainly due to global slowdown, dip in crude oil prices and rupee appreciation.

In May 2014, the country’s merchandise exports stood at USD 27.99 billion.

The last time exports registered a positive growth was in November last year when it expanded 7.27 per cent.

The main exporting sectors, including petroleum products, gems and jewellery, engineering and chemicals reported a negative growth in April.

Imports, too, declined 16.52 per cent to USD 32.75 billion. Trade deficit narrowed to USD 10.4 billion in the month under review compared with USD 11.23 billion in May 2014, according to data released by the commerce ministry.

Oil imports dropped 40.97 per cent in May to USD 8.53 billion. Non-oil imports too came down by 2.24 per cent to USD 24.21 billion.

Gold imports, however, grew 10.47 per cent to USD 2.42 billion in May.

During April-May 2015, exports fell 17.21 per cent to USD 44.4 billion. Imports, too, shrank 12.2 per cent to USD 65.8 billion, resulting in a trade deficit of USD 21.39 billion in the first two months of the current fiscal.

In March, country’s exports contracted 21 per cent, the biggest fall in the last six years.

India has missed the annual exports target of USD 340 billion for 2014-15, Last year, exports stood at USD 310.5 billion.