India's trade deficit, or the gap between imports and exports, stood at $27.14 billion in October from $20.78 billion in the preceding month, according to the data from the Ministry of Commerce & Industry on Thursday. This figure was higher than the range of estimates from 22 economists tracked by Bloomberg, which varied from a deficit of $25.5 billion to $20 billion.
The merchandise exports in October rose by 17.25% from the year-ago period to $39.2 billion, while imports increased by 3.9% to reach $66.34 billion, according to the government data. In the preceding month, merchandise exports totalled $34.58 billion, while imports amounted to $55.36 billion.
In October, services trade exports reached $34.02 billion, and imports were $17 billion. In September, exports were $30.61 billion, while imports totalled $16.32 billion.
October typically marks a period of inventory building for Christmas sales, and preliminary indications suggest that this year's Christmas sales may outperform last year's, with India potentially increasing its contributions to global markets, Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal said in a press briefing on Thursday.
Despite global economic volatility and recessionary pressures in the western markets, Indian exporters have managed to deliver across key sectors like engineering goods, rice, and textiles, keeping the country on track to surpass $800 billion in exports this year, Barthwal added.
Commenting on the US presidential elections, Barthwal said, "Irrespective of the presidency, India's integration with the US' supply chain and policies has led to steady growth in trade."
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