Goods trade deficit narrows sharply to $18.78 bn in June

This was driven by a decline in non-oil imports over the previous month, economists say

- Dhirendra Kumar & Rhik Kundu

India's merchandise trade deficit narrowed 14% to $18.78 billion in June, driven by a sharp decline in imports over the previous month, provisional data from the commerce ministry showed on Tuesday. The goods trade deficit in May stood at $21.88 billion.

Merchandise exports dipped 9.7% to $35.14 billion in June, while imports fell even more sharply by nearly 11.7% to $53.92 billion. The figure for May stood at $38.73 billion in exports and $60.61 billion in imports.

Calculated year-on-year, the trade deficit stood at $21.58 billion, with exports coming in at $35.20 billion and imports at $56.18 billion in June 2024.

The sequential deficit, at $18.78 billion, was lower than economists' expectations of $22.24 billion in a Reuters poll.

The combined exports of goods and services in June stood at $67.98 billion, while total imports reached $71.50 billion, narrowing the overall trade deficit to $3.51 billion.