India's July export growth reflects exporters' resilience and competitiveness: Industry chamber
New Delhi, Aug 13
India's record merchandise exports in July despite continuing global supply chain disruption demonstrated the ability of businesses to respond swiftly to an increasingly complex global trading environment, an industry body said on Thursday.
Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) President SC Ralhan also called for continued focus on logistics, liquidity, MSMEs and market diversification.
India's merchandise exports surged 19 per cent in July 2026 to a record $ 44.24 billion, the highest-ever merchandise export value recorded for the month of July.
Ralhan called the achievement a "strong testimony to the resilience, competitiveness and adaptability of Indian exporters."
During April-July 2026-27 merchandise exports increased by 17.04 per cent to $173.78 billion, while India's overall exports of merchandise and services grew by 13.16 per cent to $ 316.42 billion.
"Particularly encouraging is the 12.79 per cent growth in non-petroleum exports, indicating that the export momentum is broad-based and increasingly supported by manufacturing and value-added sectors," he added.
"Engineering, electronics, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, textiles and other manufacturing sectors are contributing meaningfully to this momentum. Going forward, a sharper focus on MSMEs and labour-intensive sectors will help translate export growth into greater employment and wider economic benefits," FIEO President added.
"While resilience in major markets such as the US, EU and China is encouraging, the growing presence of Indian products in the UAE, Singapore, Africa and other emerging markets reflects the conscious efforts of exporters to diversify," the statement said.
US, UAE, Singapore, China, Netherlands, UK, Germany, South Africa, Bangladesh and Tanzania featured among India's leading export destinations during April-July 2026.
The industry body cautioned about the rising import bill and widening trade deficit. During April-July, merchandise imports grew by 19.27 per cent, compared with 17.04 per cent growth in merchandise exports.
"While imports of energy, capital goods and intermediates are also associated with higher domestic economic activity, we need to simultaneously strengthen domestic manufacturing capabilities in critical inputs, electronics, machinery and other areas of high import dependence," Ralhan observed.
Ralhan emphasised building on this momentum through a responsive trade policy framework, adequate and competitive export credit, easier access to working capital, faster trade facilitation and urgent attention to shipping and logistics challenges.
— IANS
Reader Comments
Finally some positive economic news! The diversification into UAE, Singapore and African markets is smart strategy. As someone working in the logistics sector, I can tell you the shipping challenges are real - hope the government listens to FIEO's suggestions on improving port infrastructure and reducing documentation burden.
Record exports but what about the common man? Prices of essential goods are still high due to import costs. While exporters benefit, we need to ensure this growth translates into better wages for workers and doesn't just line the pockets of big corporations. MSME focus is crucial - they're the real employment generators.
Impressive numbers from India! The US and EU markets clearly value Indian engineering and pharma products. This kind of growth helps global supply chains stay resilient. Keep it up!
The 12.79% growth in non-petroleum exports is the real story here - it shows we're moving beyond just oil and raw materials to value-added manufacturing! But the widening trade deficit worries me. We're importing too much electronics and machinery. The government needs to push 'Make in India' harder in these sectors, maybe with production-linked incentives like they did for semiconductors.
From a small exporter's perspective, getting working capital and competitive credit is still a nightmare. Banks ask for too much collateral. Hope FIEO's push for easier liquidity actually reaches the ground level. Paperwork ka jhanjhat kum karo, exports aur badhenge! 📦
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