India’s fiscal 2011-12 trade deficit hits $185 billion
19 Apr 2012
India's negative balance of trade zoomed to an all-time high of $184.9 billion at end-March 2012 on the back of rising imports and declining overseas demand for India's products and services.
Imports grew at a whopping 32.1 per cent during the 2011-12 financial year to $488.6 billion while its exports grew at a slower pace of 21 per cent to $303.7 billion during the period.
Releasing the figures at a press conference in New Delhi today, commerce secretary Rahul Khullar, however, said the figures are only rough estimates and the final figures are subject to revision.
As usual, petroleum and its products and precious metals constituted the chunk of India's $488.6 billion during the 2011-12 financial year.
Trade data showed that imports of petroleum, oil and lubricants (POL) into the country grew 46.9 per cent to $155.6 billion while imports of gold and silver rose 44.4 per cent to $61.5 billion.
In fact, crude oil and petroleum products together with precious metals accounted for nearly 45 per cent of the country's total imports during the 2011-12 fiscal.
During the year, India's coal imports also rose by a whopping 80.3 per cent to $17.6 billion while machinery imports rose 27.7 per cent to $35.4 billion. Imports of electronics goods rose 23 per cent to $32.7 billion, iron and steel imports rose 15 per cent to $11.9 billion, vegetable oil imports rose 47.5 per cent to $9.7 billion and fertiliser imports rose 59 per cent to $11 billion. Imports of gems and jewellery, however, declined by 10.6 per cent to $31 billion.
During the year, export of engineering goods from the country grew 16.9 per cent to $58.2 billion; petroleum and other oil products exports rose 38.5 per cent to $57.5 billion; gem and jewellery exports grew 13.3 per cent to $45.9 billion; drugs and pharmaceuticals exports grew 21.9 per cent to $13.1 billion; leather exports rose 22.5 per cent to $4.2 billion; electronics exports rose 9.2 per cent to $9 billion; exports of cotton yarn and fabric made-ups rose 17.4 per cent to $7.2 billion, exports of readymade garments, yarns and fabrics rose 18 per cent to $13.7 billion and exports of manmade yarns and fabrics rose 18.5 per cent to $5.1 billion while marine product exports rose 31.4 per cent to $3.4 billion.
India's trade deficit stood at $118.6 billion in the previous fiscal.
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