Our Bureau
Mumbai
India’s merchandise trade deficit narrowed to $26.86 billion in August, as a sharp decline in gold imports offset a marginal month-on-month fall in exports, according to trade data reported on Tuesday. The deficit stood at $27.2 billion in August last year.
Gold imports nearly halved to $2.3 billion in August from $4.16 billion in July, helping bring down the overall import bill. Total merchandise imports fell to $70.67 billion from $76.22 billion in July, while non-oil, non-gold imports also declined.
Merchandise exports slipped marginally to $43.81 billion, but remained the highest recorded for August in at least a decade. The performance was supported by strong shipments of engineering goods, electronics and automobiles. Automobile exports rose 22.2% year-on-year, indicating continued momentum in key manufacturing segments.
The broader external trade picture was more encouraging. India’s combined goods and services exports rose 25% year-on-year to $82.68 billion, including $38.87 billion in services exports. As a result, the overall trade deficit narrowed to $9.41 billion from $11.62 billion a year earlier.
However, the improvement came amid pressure from energy costs. Crude oil imports increased 25.8% year-on-year to $16.69 billion, while India’s crude basket rose to $90.19 per barrel in August, reflecting the impact of geopolitical tensions and higher global oil prices.
The latest figures suggest that stronger services and manufacturing exports are helping contain India’s external imbalance, even as elevated oil prices and global uncertainties remain key risks to the trade outlook.