UPSC Daily News Summary | Current Affairs | Vision IAS

Daily News Summary

Get concise and efficient summaries of key articles from prominent newspapers. Our daily news digest ensures quick reading and easy understanding, helping you stay informed about important events and developments without spending hours going through full articles. Perfect for focused and timely updates.

News Summary

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
Trade Deficit Widens to $22 billion in December
  • The Economic Times
  • |
  • Economics (Macroeconomics)
  • |
  • 2025-01-16
  • Gold imports
  • trade deficit

India's trade deficit increased to $21.94 billion in December 2023 from $18.76 billion the previous year, amid a contraction in merchandise exports. Gold imports reached $4.7 billion, with overall imports rising by 5%. Key export sectors like petroleum declined, affecting trade balance improvements.

India's Trade Deficit and Export-Import Overview

India's trade deficit for December widened to $21.94 billion, compared to $18.76 billion in the previous year, with merchandise exports contracting for the second consecutive month, showing a 0.99% year-on-year decline to $38.01 billion.

  • Gold imports in December were valued at $4.7 billion.
  • Merchandise trade deficit showed a reduction compared to November.
  • The government's revision of November's gold import values, due to a double counting issue, brought down the trade deficit to $32.8 billion from an earlier $37.8 billion.
  • December 2023 saw gold imports worth $3 billion, with overall imports increasing by 5% year-on-year to $59.95 billion.

Export Growth and Challenges

Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal expressed optimism about export growth, suggesting that exports could exceed $800 billion, with current figures nearing $200 billion per quarter.

  • India's goods and services exports for October-December totaled $208 billion.
  • Key sectors like petroleum, gems and jewellery, and chemicals saw a contraction in December.
  • Pertinent challenges included commodity and metal price volatility, trade disruptions, and geopolitical tensions affecting logistics.

Specific Export Sector Insights

  • Petroleum product exports fell by 28.62% in December, with a 20.84% decline year-on-year for the fiscal year-to-date.
  • Electronics goods exports reached a 24-month high of $3.5 billion in December.
  • Readymade garments exports grew by 12.8%, reaching $1.46 billion.

International Trade Agreements

India is actively engaging in discussions to strengthen international trade agreements.

  • Talks with the UK on a proposed foreign trade agreement are scheduled for early February.
  • Negotiations to review the free trade agreement with ASEAN commence on February 10 in Indonesia.
  • The next round of FTA talks with the EU is scheduled for March 10-14 in Brussels.
  • India and the Eurasian Economic Union, comprising Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Russia, are finalizing terms for a free trade agreement.
Subscribe for Premium Features