India (Commonwealth) _ Despite geopolitical obstacles like the Red Sea situation, the nation’s goods exports are anticipated to surpass USD 450 billion by the end of this fiscal year, according to newly elected FIEO president Ashwani Kumar on Tuesday.
He stated that the issues posed by the Red Sea situation must be addressed immediately by making sure that maritime insurance is available and by rationally raising freight rates.
The exporting industry, particularly, MSMEs, requires simple and low-cost loans, and marketing support to further improve the country’s exports, Kumar said, adding early conclusion of free trade agreements such as with the UK and Oman will also help propel the outbound shipments.
MSMEs will be essential to reaching the 2030 goal of exporting goods worth $1 trillion USD. They are the foundation of the economy and are dealing with certain credit-related problems. Kumar stated, “I would implore banks to step forward and provide support to these units.” Additionally, the head of the Federation of Indian Export Organizations (FIEO) stated that the organization is investigating other exporting potential in places such as Latin America and Africa.
Despite the difficulties, he continued, “I am confident that we will surpass USD 450 billion in exports this fiscal year.”Additionally, he stated that despite problems, In February, exports increased by around 12% to USD 41.40 billion. Between April 2023 and February 2024, exports totaled USD 395 billion.
Despite the Red Sea crisis, the developed world’s stringent monetary policy, and declining commodity prices, this was an amazing rise. He claimed that this demonstrated the exporting community’s tenacity in facing such challenges ever since the Russia-Ukraine war.
February’s merchandise export growth was mostly driven by engineering items, electronic goods, medicines and medications, petroleum products, organic and inorganic chemicals, and drugs. According to exporters’ group FIEO, India’s exports are predicted to increase by 3-5 percent to USD 435–445 billion this fiscal year. The nation’s exports reached a record-breaking USD 422 billion in 2021–2022.
According to A Sakthivel, President of the Federation of Indian Export Organizations (FIEO), unless the geopolitical environment and global economic development significantly improve, the upcoming months would be rather difficult.
But with a rise of more than 3-5 percent this fiscal year, we will easily surpass the previous year’s products export objective, reaching around USD 435–445 billion, he stated in a statement. India’s exports fell 6.58 percent to USD 32.91 billion in January, marking the second consecutive month of declines as a result of a downturn in global demand.
Over the period of April to January 2022–2023, the nation’s merchandise exports increased by 8.51% to USD 369.25 billion. According to Sakthivel, FIEO is always working to support and guide the exporting sector On February 19, the country will commemorate its 58th Foundation Day, supporting India’s exports. The festivities will begin with a number of significant capacity-building programs conducted nationwide as part of the government’s One District, One Product and District as Export Hub strategy.
The event, SOURCEX INDIA (March 9–11), here, will serve as the climax of the three weeks of activities, promoting Made in India. Additionally, it would highlight prospects in the food, pharmaceutical, ayurvedic, handloom, FMCG, gifts, and textile industries.
More than 250 purchasers from supermarkets, hypermarkets, retail chains, importers, and buying houses from 35 different countries and seven regions have expressed interest in attending the event. Demand has been impacted by rising inflation and stockpiling in all major economies, which have reduced purchasing power.
India’s economy ranked fifth in the world in terms of GDP (current US dollars) in 2022, eighth in terms of total imports, 15th in terms of total exports, 140th in terms of GDP per capita (current US dollars), and 42nd most complicated in terms of the Economic Complexity Index (ECI).
Total Exports
The United States ($82.9B), United Arab Emirates ($31.6B), Netherlands ($17.6B), China ($15.3B), and Bangladesh ($13.8B) are India’s biggest export destinations, followed by refined petroleum ($86.2B), diamonds ($25.9B), packaged medications ($19.5B), jewelry ($12.6B), and rice ($11.1B).
India was the largest exporter of diamonds ($25.9 billion), rice ($11.1 billion), non-retail pure cotton yarn ($3.23 billion), synthetic repaired jewelry stones ($1.84 billion), and other pure vegetable oils ($1.28 billion) in the world in 2022.
IMPORTS
Crude Petroleum ($170 billion), Coal Briquettes ($58.7 billion), Gold ($35.8 billion), Petroleum Gas ($32 billion), and Diamonds ($26.1 billion) are India’s main imports. The majority of these imports come from China ($110 billion), the United Arab Emirates ($51 billion), the United States ($48.5 billion), Saudi Arabia ($46.2 billion), and Russia ($40.4 billion).
India was the largest importer of coal briquettes ($58.7 billion), diamonds ($26.1 billion), palm oil ($11.1 billion), mixed mineral or chemical fertilizers ($7.88 billion), and nitrogenous fertilizers ($7.37 billion) in the world in 2022.
