Raj-Hindustani
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These are all even exports by India... what's special?
India’s top 10 exports at a glance
- Engineering goods: These include industrial machinery and equipment, automobiles and their parts, and products made from iron, steel, and other metals. India’s engineering goods exports crossed the $9-billion mark for a single month for the first time in July 2021 and repeated the feat in the following two months. Demand from traditional markets such as the US, UAE, and China drove the surge. Earnings in April-September 2021 stood at $52.3 billion. Engineering goods were India’s top export in 2020-21 too, earning the country $75.97 billion, a slight dip from $81.02 billion in 2019-20.
- Petroleum products: These include petrol, diesel, gasoline, naphtha, jet fuel, liquified petroleum gas (LPG), and lubricants. India ranks among the top five exporters of refined petroleum, catering largely to markets like the US, UAE, China, Singapore, and the Netherlands. India is also the second largest refiner in Asia after China. Petroleum products exports were severely impacted by Covid-19 in 2020-21 due to the imposition of lockdowns and mobility restrictions and declined 37.3 percent year-on-year. However, they have made an impressive rebound this year.
- Gems and jewellery: These include diamonds (rough as well as cut and polished), gold jewellery, coloured gemstones, pearls, non-gold jewellery, and synthetic stones. India is the fifth largest exporter of gems and jewellery with a 5.8 percent share in global exports. Exports of cut and polished diamonds lead this segment, followed by gold jewellery. The US, Hong Kong, UAE, Belgium, and Israel are the top importers. Gems and jewellery make up 14 percent of India’s total merchandise exports. After a disappointing 2020-21, when exports fell 27.5 percent year-on-year, this commodity segment has seen a healthy revival in 2021-22. India exported gems and jewellery worth $18.98 billion in April-September 2021, 136.95 percent up from $8.01 billion in the corresponding period last year and an impressive 5.13 percent growth from the same period in pre-pandemic 2019. Exports of cut and polished diamonds are up 125 percent this year.
- Organic and inorganic chemicals: Chemicals containing carbon in their molecular structure are called organic chemicals. They have numerous uses. Some have pharmaceutical and medical applications while others are used in plastic production. Examples of organic chemicals exported by India include acetic acid, acetone, phenol, formaldehyde, and citric acid. Inorganic chemicals are those that don’t contain carbon or its derivatives as principal elements. They are used in the paint, automotive, and paper industries as well as an ingredient in cleaning solutions. Soda ash, liquid chlorine, caustic soda, red phosphorus, and calcium carbide are some of the inorganic chemicals exported by India. The US, China, Brazil, Germany, and UAE are key customers for Indian chemicals.
- Drugs and pharmaceuticals: With its large raw material base and skilled workforce, India is the third largest pharmaceutical market by volume. It accounts for 20% of global generic drugs exports, reportedly supplying 40 percent of the generic formulations used in the US. It is also the country with the largest vaccine production capacity. India’s pharma exports – which account for 8 percent of its total merchandise exports – have shown great resilience in the face of economic turmoil, including Covid-19. They registered a growth of 18 percent in 2020-21 and continue to stay strong this year.
- Electronic goods: These include mobile phones, accessories and components, laptops and computers, among others. India’s electronic goods exports fetched $11.11 billion in 2020-21, almost the same as the $11.7 billion earned in 2019-20. With global demand rallying this year, exporters are hoping for an even better performance in 2021-22. In fact, the Electronics and Computer Software Export Promotion Council says India has the potential to hit $180 billion in electronic goods exports by 2025 provided it receives long-term policy support from the government.
- Cotton yarn/fabrics/made-ups, handloom products, etc: India is the second largest cotton-producing country (China ranks first), growing 23 percent of the world’s cotton. It also has the largest area under cotton cultivation. As such, India’s textile industry is largely cotton-based. Cotton yarn/fabrics/made-ups and handloom products account for 40 percent of India’s total textiles export as of June 2021. Towels, bedsheets and other home linen are some of the most exported Indian cotton made-ups. China, Bangladesh, and Vietnam are the top three importers of Indian cotton. Despite the difficulties posed by the pandemic, India’s cotton exports rose in volume by 127 percent and in value by 106 percent in April-December 2020 compared to the same period in 2019. Indian cotton and cotton products have a price advantage over those produced in the US, Brazil, and Australia, which increases their export potential.
- Ready-made garments (RMG) of all textiles: India’s RMG industry comprises garments made from natural fibres such as cotton, wool, and silk as well as man-made and synthetic fibres. However, cotton is the predominant raw material used in Indian ready-made apparel. The RMG sector makes up 50 percent of India’s textiles and apparel industry. India is also the fifth largest exporter of RMG in the world (it used to be second till a decade ago). The US, UAE, UK, Germany, and France are the largest importers of Indian RMG by value. Despite being one of India’s top exports and one of its largest job creators, RMG exports have been falling in recent years, primarily due to stiff competition from Bangladesh and Vietnam, which enjoy preferential tariffs in the global market and have lower production costs.
- Marine products: India’s main seafood exports are frozen shrimp and frozen fish. The US is the largest importer of Indian marine products, followed by China, the European Union, and Japan. In the past two years, the pandemic has severely tested Indian exporters of marine products. Exports fell 10.88 percent in 2020-21 from the previous financial year as demand went flat. This year too, exports suffered as China suspended seafood imports from India, citing the presence of coronavirus traces in packaging. It also blacklisted six Indian seafood exporters. In September 2021, China started online inspections of marine products at multiple processing-cum-export units in several Indian states. This, coupled with a resurgence in demand in the US and a good shrimp harvest, has given hope to exporters that they will be able to meet the government’s target of $7.8 billion in seafood exports for this financial year.
- Plastic and linoleum: Thanks to a large raw material base, India produces and exports a wide range of plastic products such as packaging, sanitary fittings, electrical accessories, sacks/bags, tarpaulins, laminates, and medical equipment. However, India accounts for a mere 1 percent of the global plastics market, which is dominated by China (10 percent). The US and China are the top importers of Indian plastics. India’s plastic and linoleum exports totalled $7.45 billion in 2020-21. They have shown a stronger performance this year, growing by 55 percent in the April-June 2021 period compared to the same period in 2020. The revival is due to initiatives by the Plastics Export Promotion Council to boost exports to Europe, especially France.
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