India's merchandise exports in September slightly rose to USD 34.58 billion against USD 34.41 billion a year ago, according to government data released on Wednesday.

Imports increased by 1.6 per cent to USD 55.36 billion in September compared to USD 54.49 billion in the year-ago period.

The trade deficit, or the gap between imports and exports, was USD 20.78 billion during the month under review.

India's merchandise exports declined by 9.3 per cent year-on-year in August.

Exports during April-September this fiscal increased by one per cent to USD 213.22 billion, and imports grew 6.16 per cent to USD 350.66 billion.

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