India's FY27 begins strong: Exports rise, trade deficit narrows

India's trade performance in April 2026 saw overall exports rise to USD 80.80 billion. Despite higher imports, the overall trade deficit narrowed year-on-year to USD 7.81 billion, aided by strong growth in merchandise and services exports.

India began FY27 on a strong trade note, with overall exports rising to USD 80.80 billion in April 2026 and the country's overall trade deficit narrowing year-on-year to USD 7.81 billion, according to data released by the Commerce Ministry on Friday.

India's overall exports, including merchandise and services, stood at USD 80.80 billion in April 2026, up from USD 71.13 billion in April 2025, according to data released by the Commerce Ministry on Friday.

India's overall imports during the month stood at USD 88.61 billion, up from USD 82.29 billion a year ago. However, despite the rise in imports, the country's overall trade deficit narrowed sharply to USD 7.81 billion in April 2026 from USD 11.16 billion a year ago, aided by strong growth in exports.

Merchandise and Services Breakdown

The data showed that merchandise exports increased to USD 43.56 billion in April 2026 from USD 38.28 billion in the same month last year, while services exports rose to USD 37.24 billion from USD 32.85 billion. On the import side, merchandise imports climbed to USD 71.94 billion in April 2026 against USD 65.38 billion a year ago. Services imports, however, eased slightly to USD 16.66 billion from USD 16.91 billion.

Non-Petroleum Trade

According to the Commerce Ministry data, non-petroleum merchandise exports registered a growth of 9.01 per cent in April 2026 compared to April 2025. Non-petroleum merchandise imports rose 19.33 per cent during the same period.

Key Sector Performance

Among key export sectors, engineering goods exports increased to USD 10.35 billion in April 2026 from USD 9.52 billion a year ago, while electronic goods exports rose sharply to USD 5.18 billion from USD 3.69 billion. Petroleum product exports also increased to USD 9.59 billion from USD 7.12 billion.

Major Import Categories

On the import front, electronic goods imports rose to USD 12.78 billion from USD 9.25 billion, while gold imports surged to USD 5.63 billion from USD 3.10 billion in April 2025.

Trade by Partner Countries

The data also showed that India's exports to the United States rose marginally to USD 8.48 billion in April 2026 from USD 8.38 billion a year earlier. Exports to Singapore jumped to USD 3.20 billion from USD 1.14 billion, while exports to the UAE declined to USD 2.19 billion from USD 3.43 billion.

China remained India's top import source during the month, with imports rising to USD 11.97 billion from USD 9.91 billion a year ago. Imports from Russia also increased to USD 7.36 billion from USD 6.23 billion.

Review of FY 2025-26

The Commerce Ministry data further showed that India's total trade during FY 2025-26 reached a record USD 863.1 billion, compared to USD 825.3 billion in FY 2024-25, registering a growth of 4.6 per cent. (ANI)

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