Exports fall for 16th month; trade deficit narrows

Declining for the 16th straight month in March, exports contracted by 5.47 per cent to USD 22.71 billion in the month as shipments of petroleum and engineering products shrunk sharply due to tepid global demand.

For the 2015-16 financial year ended 31 March, exports declined by 15.8 per cent to a five-year low of USD 261.13 billion due to fragile global demand and low commodity prices.

Imports dipped by 15.28 per cent to USD 379.6 billion in 2015-16, leaving a trade deficit of USD 118.45 billion. The trade gap was USD 137.69 billion in 2014-15.

The levels of exports and imports are the lowest since 2010-11. Exports and imports were at USD 245.86 billion and USD 350.69 billion, respectively, in 2010-11.

Plus, trade deficit, the gap between imports and exports, in the last month of 2015-16 fiscal fell to a five-year low of USD 5.07 billion as imports dropped 21.56 per cent to USD 27.7 billion in the month.

Trade deficit was at USD 2.63 billion in December 2010.

The Commerce Ministry, however, said the trend of falling exports is in tandem with other major world economies.

But industry experts termed trade figures as "alarming" and demanded immediate steps to boost exports.

"The figures are alarming. Immediate steps like creating a fund to enhance marketing activities need to be announced," Rafeeq Ahmed, former FIEO President and Chairman of Council for Leather Exports, said.

In March, overseas shipments of petroleum products shrank 21.43 per cent to USD 2.07 billion, while that of engineering goods declined by 11.29 per cent to USD 5.34 billion.

Oil imports in last month were valued at USD 4.79 billion - 35.3 per cent lower than the same month last year. Non-oil imports too dipped by 17.92 per cent to USD 22.98 billion.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had said, "There are concerns about export growth which is declining consecutively for more than a year due to slowdown in global demand".

-PTI