India’s exports have continued to grow during the financial year 2025-26, reflecting the resilience of the country’s trade sector despite changing global economic conditions. According to the latest data released by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, India’s combined exports of merchandise and services stood at 790.86 billion dollars between April 2025 and February 2026. This represents a 5.79 per cent increase compared with 747.58 billion dollars recorded during the same period in the previous financial year.
The growth has been supported by strong performance in several sectors including engineering goods, electronics, chemicals, gems and jewellery, and agricultural products. These sectors have continued to strengthen India’s position in global trade. Officials say that the steady rise in exports also reflects diversification in India’s export basket along with growing international demand for Indian services and manufactured products.
India’s merchandise exports, which include physical goods such as manufactured items, agricultural products, and minerals, recorded moderate growth during the period. Between April 2025 and February 2026, merchandise exports reached 402.93 billion dollars, compared with 395.66 billion dollars during the same period of the previous financial year, registering a growth of 1.84 per cent.
Although the increase appears modest, reports point out that the global trade environment has remained uncertain due to geopolitical tensions, supply chain disruptions and fluctuations in commodity prices.
Non-petroleum exports also showed encouraging improvement during this period. Exports excluding petroleum products rose to 354.12 billion dollars, reflecting a 5.03 per cent increase from 337.17 billion dollars recorded in the previous year. However, the rise in imports during the same period led to a widening of India’s merchandise trade deficit. Total merchandise imports reached 713.53 billion dollars, which was significantly higher than the previous year’s figures.
As a result, the merchandise trade deficit expanded to 310.60 billion dollars, compared with 261.80 billion dollars recorded during April–February 2024-25. Reports say that the increase in imports is largely linked to higher domestic demand for energy, industrial raw materials and machinery as India’s economy continues to grow and manufacturing activity expands.
The trade data for February 2026 also indicates strong overall export momentum. India’s combined exports of goods and services during the month were estimated at 76.13 billion dollars, reflecting an 11.05 per cent increase compared with February 2025. At the same time, imports grew even faster. Total imports during February stood at 80.09 billion dollars, registering a 21.64 per cent increase on a year-on-year basis. Looking specifically at merchandise trade, exports in February were estimated at 36.61 billion dollars, slightly lower than the 36.91 billion dollars recorded in February 2025.
On the other hand, merchandise imports rose sharply to 63.71 billion dollars, compared with 51.33 billion dollars during the same month last year. This significant rise in imports contributed to a higher monthly trade deficit, highlighting the continued dependence on imported raw materials and energy products.
India’s services sector has emerged as one of the strongest pillars supporting export growth and helping to balance the country’s overall trade position. Services exports for February 2026 were estimated at 39.53 billion dollars, marking a sharp increase from 31.65 billion dollars recorded in February 2025. For the April–February period of the current financial year, services exports reached 387.93 billion dollars, compared with 351.93 billion dollars during the same period in the previous year.
Services imports during this period were estimated at 186.98 billion dollars, resulting in a services trade surplus of 200.96 billion dollars. This surplus is considerably higher than the 170.69 billion dollars recorded during April-February FY25.
Reports believe that India’s services sector, particularly information technology services, business process outsourcing, financial services and consulting, continues to experience strong demand in international markets, especially in North America and Europe. The services sector therefore remains an important factor in supporting India’s overall export performance.
Several sectors recorded notable growth in February 2026 compared with the same month last year, highlighting the diverse nature of India’s export economy. Engineering goods exports increased by 12.9 per cent, rising from 9.17 billion dollars to 10.36 billion dollars. Electronic goods exports also witnessed significant growth of 10.37 per cent, increasing from 3.79 billion dollars to 4.18 billion dollars. Exports of organic and inorganic chemicals grew by 6.85 per cent, moving from 2.23 billion dollars to 2.38 billion dollars. The gems and jewellery sector also recorded growth of 4.08 per cent, reaching 2.64 billion dollars.
Meanwhile, exports of meat, dairy and poultry products saw a particularly strong increase of 22.66 per cent, rising from 0.45 billion dollars to 0.55 billion dollars. Other sectors that showed positive export growth included coffee, marine products, handicrafts, minerals, ceramic products, pharmaceuticals, fruits and vegetables, cereal preparations and rice. This broad-based growth indicates that India’s export base is expanding across manufacturing, agriculture and processed goods sectors.
Exports excluding petroleum products and gems and jewellery are often considered a more accurate measure of the underlying strength of an economy’s export sector. These exports also showed encouraging growth during the current financial year. In February 2026, such exports stood at 30.55 billion dollars, compared with 28.66 billion dollars in February 2025. For the April-February FY26 period, exports excluding petroleum and gems reached 327.96 billion dollars, up from 310.25 billion dollars during the same period last year.
This growth suggests that diversified sectors such as manufacturing, electronics, chemicals and agriculture are increasingly contributing to India’s export expansion.
India’s exports recorded strong growth in several international markets during February. Key destinations that saw higher export demand included China, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Togo and Sri Lanka. Over the broader April–February FY26 period, exports to major global markets such as the United States, the United Arab Emirates, Spain and Hong Kong also recorded notable growth. These markets continue to play an important role for India’s export-oriented industries.
On the import side, several countries recorded higher export volumes to India during the same period. Major sources of imports included China, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, the United States and Peru. These imports mainly consist of machinery, electronics, precious metals, energy products and industrial raw materials that support India’s manufacturing and infrastructure sectors.
Overall, the latest trade data indicates that India’s export sector is maintaining steady growth despite global economic uncertainties. While the increase in imports has widened the merchandise trade deficit, the strong performance of the services sector continues to provide a significant cushion to the country’s overall trade balance.
With continued policy focus on expanding manufacturing capacity, diversifying export markets and strengthening the services sector, India is expected to maintain its position as one of the fastest-growing major trading economies in the world in the coming years.
