Export numbers reflect resilience of Indian economy: FIEO

The Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) has said the latest export numbers reflected the resilience of the country’s economy. Amidst geopolitical challenges such as the Russia-Ukraine war and the Red Sea crisis, the country clocked $776.86 billion in 2023-24 as compared to $776.40, Ashwani Kumar, President of FIEO, said.

Commenting on the latest export performance numbers, he said that goods exports in March 2024 were the highest during any month of FY 2023-24, touching $41.68 billion. Imports for the month stood at $57.28 billion, reflecting a merchandise trade gap of $15.6 billion.

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Ashwani Kumar said that the major growth drivers of merchandise exports during 2023-24 were electronic goods, drugs and pharmaceuticals, engineering goods, iron ore, and ceramic products. “This is a good sign as most of these sectors are labour-intensive sectors, giving a boost to employment creation in the country,” he said.

“The sector also needs easy and low-cost credit, marketing support, besides the conclusion of some of the key free trade agreements with the UK, Peru, and Oman soon,” he added.