India’s trade deficit narrowed sharply to $21.94 billion in December 2024 from the record $31.83 billion in November, driven by a significant reduction in gold imports and a decline in the net oil import bill, government data revealed on Wednesday.
Exports contracted for the second straight month, falling 1 per cent year-on-year to $38.01 billion, as global economic uncertainties dampened demand. Imports, meanwhile, rose 4.8 per cent to $59.95 billion but eased from the November peak of $63.86 billion.
Key export sectors, including petroleum products, gems and jewellery, and chemicals, registered negative growth in December. Petroleum product shipments dropped 28.6 per cent to $4.91 billion, contributing to a cumulative decline of 20.8 per cent in the category during the first nine months of the fiscal year, amounting to $49 billion.
Despite challenges, sectors such as textiles, electronics, engineering goods, rice, and marine products displayed robust growth, underscoring their resilience amid a turbulent global trade environment.
From April to December 2024, India’s exports grew 1.6 per cent to $321.71 billion, while imports increased 5.15 per cent to $532.48 billion. Consequently, the trade deficit for the nine-month period widened to $210.77 billion from $189.74 billion in the same period a year ago.
Commerce secretary Sunil Barthwal lauded the relative strength of India’s exports despite global headwinds. “India is performing better than many other countries in both goods and services exports. Non-petroleum exports have shown particularly robust growth,” he said during a media briefing.
To further strengthen trade performance, the ministry recently engaged with Indian missions in 20 key countries, which account for 60 per cent of India’s exports, to identify challenges and devise solutions to enhance outbound trade.
The government revised gold import data for November 2024, reducing it by $5 billion to $9.84 billion. This revision lowered the November trade deficit to $31.83 billion.
In December, gold imports surged 55.4 per cent year-on-year to $4.7 billion, buoyed by a customs duty cut earlier in the year. Silver imports rose even more sharply, by 211 per cent, to $421.91 million.