The Wire Staff 
New Delhi: India’s goods exports grew by 17.25% in October, reaching $39.2 billion, marking the fastest monthly rise in over two years. This growth follows a slow first half of the financial year, where exports increased by just 1%.
However, imports too rose by 3.9%, reaching a new high of $66.34 billion, surpassing the previous record of $64.34 billion in August. As a result, the trade deficit widened to $27.14 billion in October, up from $20.8 billion in September. This is the second-largest trade deficit this year and the third-highest ever.
The increase in imports was largely driven by higher gold and petroleum imports, The Hindu reported. Gold imports reached $7.13 billion, a slight 1.4% decline compared to October 2023 but a 62% jump from September 2024.
Petroleum imports grew by 13.3% year-on-year to $18.3 billion, a 46.4% increase from the previous month. Meanwhile, petroleum exports fell by 22.1% to $4.58 billion, continuing their downward trend.
Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal however pointed out that non-petroleum exports rose to an all-time high of $211.3 billion. If the trend continues, India’s total exports, including services, could exceed $800 billion for the year, he said.
“A key factor for the 17%-plus growth in exports could be improved demand for this Christmas from developed markets as firms start stocking up inventories for the festival. This demand seems far better than last year and gives us confidence that the coming months will also see a healthy uptick,” Barthwal said.
“If you look at the UNCTAD and the World Trade Organisation projections for this year, they are very pessimistic. But despite the global situation being highly volatile, growth in the Western countries slowing with some recessionary trends, and the disruptions in global trade routes, our exporters have been able to do well in several sectors,” he added.
Barthwal attributed the double-digit growth in exports of engineering goods, chemicals, electronics, rice, and labour-intensive sectors such as readymade garments and textiles to the government’s focus on specific sectors and markets, alongside supportive policies.