Trade deficit widens to all-time high of $37 bn in November

WPI inflation eases to three-month low in Nov

India’s wholesale price inflation in November eased to a three-month low of 1.89 per cent as prices of food items, especially vegetables, fell, according to Ministry Of Commerce and Industry data. The wholesale price index was 2.36 per cent in October, and stood at 0.39 per cent in November last year.

Led by a significant surge in imports and a fall in merchandise exports, India’s merchandise trade deficit — the gap between imports and exports — widened to an all-time high of $37.84 billion in November.

This is the highest monthly trade deficit in the current fiscal year. Compared to last year, imports grew by 27 per cent to $69.95 billion in November, while exports declined by 4.86 per cent to $32.11 billion during the month, according to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry’s data.

India’s merchandise trade deficit was $27.14 billion in October, $20.78 billion in September and $29.7 billion in August. In July, the merchandise trade deficit was $23.5 billion. The deficit was $20.98 billion in June, $23.78 billion in May and $19.1 billion in April.

On an annual basis, trade deficit widened in November 2024, compared to November 2023. The merchandise trade deficit was $21.31 billion in the corresponding month last year, according to the data.

According to experts, the fall in petroleum exports caused the fall in November goods exports due to the price effect.

Despite global headwinds, some sectors have driven India’s export growth.

The major drivers of merchandise exports growth in November were rice (95.18 per cent) and electronic goods (54.72 per cent).