Slowdown in western economies pulled down India exports for the fourth month in a row in August to 9.74 per cent, making the task of achieving $360 billion target in the current fiscal difficult.
During April-August, the shipment dipped by about six per cent to $120 billion from $127.6 billion in the same period last year, Commerce Secretary S R Rao told reporters in New Delhi.
In his opening remarks at the G20 Leaders' Summit at the Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, Modi said the 21st century is a time of giving new direction to the world.
Reflecting slowdown in the economy, imports too declined by 7.61 per cent to $37.9 billion in July, leaving a trade deficit of $15.4 billion.
According to the data released by the Commerce Ministry on Wednesday, exports during the April-June quarter of 2012-13 fiscal dipped by 1.7 per cent to $75.2 billion, from $76.5 billion in the same period last fiscal.
Exports stood at $23.6 billion in April last year, according to data released by the Commerce Ministry in New Delhi on Friday.
In September, 2010, the country's outbound shipments were valued at $18.2 billion.
The Reserve Bank has told the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that the objective of frequent interventions in the forex market is to curb excessive volatility, dismissing the Fund's rationale for reclassifying India's exchange rate regime. The IMF, following the Article IV consultation with the Indian authorities, reclassified the status of the exchange rate regime to "stabilised arrangement" from "floating" for period between December 2022 to October 2023. India's Executive Director at IMF K V Subramanian and Senior Advisors Sanjay Kumar Hansda and Anand Singh questioned the selection period adopted by the Fund for analysis and also reclassification of the country's exchange rate regime.
India Inc's net profit as a percentage of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) is just shy of reaching 5 per cent, bolstered by strong earnings growth in the second quarter of 2023-24. Analysts interpret this as an indication that a corporate profit upcycle is in progress, with projections suggesting that this share could exceed 8 per cent within the next five years, driven by bullish earnings growth expectations. "We believe we are only halfway through a profit cycle, with the profit share in GDP rising from a low of 2 per cent in 2020 to about 5 per cent currently, and likely heading to 8 per cent in the coming four to five years. "This implies about 20 per cent compounding of earnings growth. "Underscoring this forecast is the start of a new private capex cycle, under-geared balance sheets, a healthy banking system, lower corporate tax rates, improving terms of trade, and structural consumption demand outlook albeit somewhat offset by likely consolidation in government deficit," said Ridham Desai, managing director, head of research, Morgan Stanley India in a note.
The RBI, in its last policy statement, had mentioned that 'headroom for further monetary easing remains quite limited' due to risks on account of the current account, and pressures on inflation.
The country's apex exporters body Federation of Indian Export Organisations said that support extended by the minister for research and development activities and reduction of duties on capital goods will help in increasing competitiveness of Indian products in the global market.
Imports too grew by a fast pace of 41.8 per cent.
India has been forcefully raising the issue of market access as well as protected lists of goods mainly to shield its domestic market as there have been fears that the country may be flooded with cheap Chinese agricultural and industrial products once it signs the deal.
Imports grew at a faster rate of 20.25 per cent to $40.1 billion.
Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto's decision to cancel his planned trip to the United States next week was mutually agreed upon, US President Donald Trump has said stating that such a meeting would be "fruitless unless Mexico is going to treat America fairly".
In a recent note, the global brokerage firm said India now commands a weight of 19 per cent in the above-mentioned portfolio as compared to 18.2 per cent in September 2023. India, it said, is a large liquid market and remains a counter-weight to North Asia if a slowdown in the West occurs and China's recovery disappoints.
Exports had stood at $25.3 billion in December 2011.
China keeps most of its foreign reserves in the United States Government securities.
India's exports in November contracted 4.17 per cent year-on-year, for the seventh month in a row, to $22.2 billion, due to slowdown in demand in the US and European markets.
Contracting for the seventh month in a row, India's exports dipped by 15.82 per cent in June to $22.28 billion due to global slowdown and dip in crude oil prices that impacted shipments of petroleum products.
Exports were down mainly due to the demand slowdown in the US and European markets.
The Commerce Ministry earlier this week commissioned a study to assess the impact of free trade agreement with South Korea, with which India had a trade deficit of about $9 billion in 2012-13.
The sectors that exhibited major growth during the April-September, 2011, period include engineering, gems and jewellery and petroleum.
Imports, too, grew by 41.8 per cent to $38.4 billion in August, translating into a trade deficit of $14 billion during the month, as per the data.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Commerce has observed that a massive shortfall in the budgetary allocation of over Rs 1,900 crore by the finance ministry to the industry department may have an adverse impact on the implementation of infrastructure (infra) projects in 2022-23 (FY23). While the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) had sought Rs 10,267 crore from the finance ministry for FY23, it received Rs 8,348-crore allocation. For the National Industrial Corridor Development & Implementation Trust (NICDIT), the finance ministry has allocated Rs 1,500 crore instead of Rs 2,400 crore demanded for the project.
Ongoing trade-war rhetoric between the US and China added some nervousness on the trading front coupled with extremely bullish dollar sentiment overseas.
Imports too jumped by 51.5 per cent to $40.4 billion in July against $26.6 billion in the same period last year, leaving a trade deficit of $11 billion, the Commerce Ministry said on Thursday.
Will come out with a response on the issue shortly.
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The trade deficit stood at $6.54 billion in February this year.
Key to Modi's plan will be the interest rates offered for gold deposits.
Imports too contracted during the month by 7.61 per cent to $37.9 billion.
The value of oil imports decreased by 37.5%.
Import growth moderated to a four-month low, owing to sharp decline in that of gold.
Sentiment turned weak after data released after market hours on Monday showed that the country's trade deficit, or difference between imports and exports, reached USD 14.88 billion in December, up about 41 per cent year-on-year, as crude oil and gold import bill inflated.
Global buyers are putting pressure on exporters to offer discounts between 10 per cent and 15 per cent.
Imports, however, were higher at $350.69 billion, despite growing at a lower pace of 21.6 per cent amid increasing crude oil prices.
Exports rise 36.4 per cent year-on-year, the highest in the past 33-months, to $22.5 billion in December 2010
Continuing the growth momentum of 2005-06 in the current fiscal, India's exports increased 27 per cent in April 2006-07 to touch $8.346 billion.
India's exports, for the first time, crossed the $51 billion-mark in 2002-03, increasing the possibility of achieving the one per cent share of the world trade much ahead of the targeted year 2007.
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