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Key Points

India's combined exports grew 2.8% in May despite merchandise decline, driven by strong services performance. The trade deficit improved significantly to $6.6 billion as imports dipped slightly. Fiscal year 2024-25 saw record $824.9 billion exports, surpassing government targets. Production-linked incentives and global supply chain integration are fueling India's export resilience.

Key Points: India's May Exports Rise 2.8% to $71.1B as Trade Deficit Narrows

  • May services exports surge 9.4% to $32.4B
  • Trade deficit narrows 29% YoY to $6.6B
  • FY2024-25 exports cross $800B target
  • PLI scheme boosts manufacturing competitiveness
2 min read

India's export rose 2.8% in May at $71.1 billion; trade deficit narrowed

India's May exports hit $71.1B with services growth offsetting goods decline, as trade deficit shrinks to $6.6B amid global demand shifts.

"India's total exports touched an all-time high of $824.9B in FY2024-25 - Commerce Ministry Data"

New Delhi, June 16

India's overall exports, merchandise and services combined, in May were reported at USD 71.12 billion, marking a 2.77 per cent rise on a yearly basis, data from the Union Commerce Ministry showed on Monday. The total exports in May 2024 were pegged at USD 69.20 billion.

Exports of merchandise goods declined from USD 39.59 billion to USD 38.73 billion, and exports of services rose from USD 29.61 billion to USD 32.39 billion during May 2025.

India imported goods and services worth USD 77.75 billion, down from USD 78.55 billion in the same month last year.

The trade deficit in May narrowed to USD 6.62 billion from USD 9.35 billion same month last year.

So far in 2025-26, April-May, India's total exports now stood at around USD 142.43 billion, up 5.75 per cent year-on-year.

The country's imports too increased year-on-year in April-May, by 6.52 per cent as per data published today.

Overall imports, both merchandise and services combined, during April-May increased from USD 149.81 billion to USD 157.57 billion.

April-May combined trade deficit, meaning the difference between the exports and the imports -- was at USD 17.14 billion, compared with USD 15.12 billion same period of last fiscal.

India's total exports have touched an all-time high of USD 824.9 billion in the recently-concluded financial year 2024-25. This marks a yearly growth of 6.01 per cent over USD 778.1 billion exports in 2023-24, setting a new annual milestone.

The 2024-25 exports exceeded the initial anticipation of USD 800 billion.

In 2024-25, services exports continued to drive the growth momentum, reaching a historic high of USD 387.5 billion, up 13.6 per cent from USD 341.1 billion in the previous year.

In 2024-25, merchandise exports stood at USD 437.42 billion in 2024-25, with a marginal increase.

India's total trade deficit (merchandise and services) for the fiscal year 2024-25 widened to USD 94.26 billion, from USD 78.1 billion in 2023-24.

Among various steps the government took was to launch a Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme in varied sectors, including electronic goods, to make Indian manufacturers globally competitive, attract investments, enhance exports, integrate India into the global supply chain and reduce dependency on imports. These seemed to have reaped dividends for rising exports.

Adding an interesting layer to the market's expectations, a prediction contract with 27 active traders on the platform Probo - a popular opinion trading platform - currently assigns a 45 per cent probability to India achieving cumulative exports of USD 950 billion or more in FY 2025-26.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

R
Rajesh K.
Good to see services exports growing strongly! 💪 This shows our IT and professional services sector remains competitive globally. But we need to focus more on manufacturing exports - PLI scheme seems promising but results are still slow. Make in India needs more push!
P
Priya M.
The trade deficit narrowing is excellent news! Though yearly deficit has increased, which is concerning. We must reduce our dependence on Chinese imports especially in electronics and machinery. At this rate, $950 billion exports next year seems ambitious but achievable if manufacturing picks up.
A
Amit S.
As someone working in export business, I can say infrastructure bottlenecks at ports and complex regulations still hurt us. The numbers look good on paper but ground reality is tougher. Government should simplify processes and improve logistics to help small exporters.
S
Sunita R.
Our services sector is truly shining! 🇮🇳 But why is merchandise export growth so sluggish? We have so much potential in textiles, handicrafts and agriculture products. Need better marketing and quality standards to compete with Bangladesh and Vietnam in these sectors.
V
Vikram J.
The widening annual trade deficit is worrying despite monthly improvements. We're importing too much oil and electronics. Time to seriously push for renewable energy and domestic electronics manufacturing. PLI scheme needs to show faster results on ground.
N
Neha P.
Happy to see exports crossing $800 billion! 🎉 But let's not forget the global economic slowdown might affect future growth. We should diversify our export markets beyond US and Europe - focus more on Africa and Latin America where demand is growing.

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