Commerce ministry asks exporters to focus on potential sectors, key markets to boost exports

The meeting was chaired by commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal.

The six sectors which hold huge potential to increase the country’s exports include food, textiles, engineering, electricals and electronics, medical devices, pharma and auto components.

The main global destinations where exports could be promoted further include the US, UK, Brazil, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Sweden, Taiwan, Korea, Japan and Russia.

An industry representative, who participated in the meeting, said that emphasis was given on both trade and investments.

Increasing investments will help in promoting trade through integration with global value chains.

The meeting assumed significance as the country’s merchandise exports have been contracting for the last four months due to demand slowdown in the global markets.

An exporter said that the export figures for June are also looking "disappointing" due to the global economic uncertainties.

"Trade and investments need to be promoted parallelly," the exporter added.

Exports declined for the fourth consecutive month by 10.3 percent year-on-year to USD 34.98 billion in May, while the trade deficit widened to a five-month high of USD 22.12 billion, according to the ministry data.

Cumulatively, exports during April-May this fiscal contracted by 11.41 per cent to USD 69.72 billion, while imports declined 10.24 percent to USD 107 billion.

Demand slowdown in major markets, high inflation in developed economies and the Russia-Ukraine war are impacting the country’s exports.

Representatives from different export promotion councils from sectors such as apparel and medical devices participated in the meeting besides Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) and industry associations.

Last month, commerce secretary Suni Barthwal has stated that the ministry is working on a trade strategy to promote exports.

As part of that, the Department of Commerce, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Invest India and Indian missions abroad would focus on 40 countries.

These countries, including the US and European Union nations, account for 85 percent of India’s total exports.