The deficit would have been lower if gold imports hadn't shot up 85.16 per cent last month to $2.91 billion
India's exports contracted 13.6 per cent in January - 14th month in a row - to $21 billion due to a steep fall in shipment of petroleum products and engineering goods amid tepid global demand.
Imports too shrank 11 per cent to $28.71 billion last month, leaving a trade deficit of $7.63 billion as against $7.87 billion in the same month last year. It is the lowest deficit in 11 months. In February last year, it was $6.85 billion.
The deficit would have been lower if gold imports hadn't shot up 85.16 per cent last month to $2.91 billion.
Overseas shipments of petroleum products shrank 35.18 per cent to $1.95 billion in January, while that of engineering goods declined by 27.6 per cent to 4.98 million.
For the first 10 months of the current fiscal, cumulative exports declined by 17.65 per cent to $217.67 billion, as against $264.32 billion in April-January period of 2014-15.
As per the data released by the commerce ministry, imports dipped by 15.46 per cent to $324.52 billion for the 10 months, leaving a trade deficit of $106.8 billion. The trade gap was $119.55 billion in April-January 2014-15.
Oil imports last month were valued at $5.02 billion - 39.01 per cent lower than the same month last year. Non-oil imports, too, dipped by 1.4 per cent to $23.68 billion.
