Our Bureau
New Delhi
India’s exports have risen to a record $820.93 billion in FY25 surpassing last year’s $778.13 billion with a 5.5% growth, according to data released by the Ministry of Commerce.
The country’s Merchandise exports in 2024-2025 reached $437.42 billion, marginally higher than the previous year’s level of $437.07 billion, driven by the rush to front-load shipments before US President Donald Trump’s announcement of reciprocal tariffs at the beginning of April. Merchandise imports rose 6% to $720 billion during the year. Non-petroleum exports stood out, rising by 6% to reach an all-time high of $374.08 billion, compared to $352.92 billion last year.
During March, India’s goods exports rose for the first time in four months to stand at $42 billion, 0.7% higher than the same period last year. Imports were up 11.3% to $63.5 billion, leading to a trade deficit of $21.5 billion, compared with $15.3 billion in March 2024.
The services exports sector paved the way for a sharp 12.45% year-on-year increase and contributed significantly to the overall trade expansion. Key segments included telecommunications, IT and business services, travel, and financial services.
“This past year was quite difficult. So many things happened globally— geopolitical tensions, disruptions in sea routes, and recessions in several countries. Despite the WTO’s very pessimistic projections for global trade, India has done extremely well. In fact, we’ve performed better than the global average,” said Sunil Barthwal, commerce secretary.
The US, UAE, Netherlands, UK, and Japan emerged as India’s top export destinations, while China, Russia, and Gulf nations remained major import sources.
