Question

Explain the recent trends in India’s exports.

Answer 1

Export trade refers to the sale of goods and services by one country to another. In other words, it is the outflow of goods from a home country to a foreign country.

The recent trends in India’s exports are as follows:

1. Engineering goods: According to the Engineering Goods Export Promotion Council (EGEPC) Report, the share of engineering goods was 25% of India’s total exports in 2017-18. Within this category, some of the prominent exported items are transport equipment including automobiles and auto components, machinery, and instruments. During the period 2010-11 to 2014-15, exports of transport equipment have grown from 16 billion dollars to 24.8 billion dollars.
2. Petroleum products: India’s petroleum capacity increased significantly since 2001-02, due to which India turned as a net exporter of petroleum refinery products. Petroleum products had a share of 4.3% in India’s total exports in 2000-01, which rose steadily to 20.1% in 2013-14.
3. Chemicals and chemical products: An important export item that has performed reasonably well over the last few years is chemicals and chemical products. The share of this item was 10.4% in 2014-15.
4. Gems and Jewellery: Gems and jewellery are one of the major contributors to export earnings in India, having a share of 13.3% in India’s merchandise export in 2014-15.
5. Textiles and readymade garments: India is one of the leading exporting countries of textiles and readymade garments in the world. The share of textiles and garments in total exports of the country was 11.3% in 2014-15.