Foreign trade of India

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Foreign trade in India includes all imports and exports to and from India. At the level of Central Government it is administered by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. As of 2014.

History

There are records throughout history of India's trade with foreign countries. Even before independence, the Government of India maintained semi-autonomous diplomatic relations. It had colonies (such as the Aden Settlement), who sent and received full missions, and was a founder member of both the League of Nations and the United Nations. After India gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1947, it soon joined the Commonwealth of Nations and strongly supported independence movements in other colonies, like the Indonesian National Revolution. The partition and various territorial disputes, particularly that over Kashmir, would strain its relations with Pakistan for years to come. During the Cold War, India adopted a foreign policy of not aligning itself with any major power bloc. However, India developed close ties with the Soviet Union and received extensive military support from it.

Around 100CE

The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea is a document written by an anonymous sailor from Alexandria about 100CE describing trade between countries, including India.

Around 1500

In 1498 Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama landed in Calicut (modern day Kozhikode in Kerala as the first European to ever sail to India. The tremendous profit made during this trip made the Portuguese eager for more trade with India and attracted other European navigators and tradesmen.

Pedro Álvares Cabral left for India in 1500 and established Portuguese trading posts at Calicut and Cochin (modern day Kochi), returning to Portugal in 1501 with pepper, ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, mace, and cloves. The profits made from this trip were huge.

1991 economic reform

Prior to the 1991 economic liberalisation,India was a closed economy due to the average tariffs exceeding 200 percent and the extensive quantitative restrictions on imports. Foreign investment was strictly restricted to only allow Indian ownership of businesses. Since the liberalisation, India's economy has improved mainly due to increased foreign trade.

Exports and imports

India exports approximately 7500 commodities to about 190 countries, and imports around 6000 commodities from 140 countries. India exported US$318.2 billion and imported $462.9 billion worth of commodities in 2014.

Summary table of recent India Foreign Trade:

Year	Export	Import	Trade Deficit
1999	36.3	50.2	-13.9
2000	43.1	60.8	-17.7
2001	42.5	54.5	-12.0
2002	44.5	53.8	-9.3
2003	48.3	61.6	-13.3
2004	57.24	74.15	-16.91
2005	69.18	89.33	-20.15
2006	76.23	113.1	-36.87
2007	112.0	187.9	-75.9
2008	176.4	305.5	-129.1
2009	168.2	274.3	-106.1
2010	201.1	327.0	-125.9
2011	299.4	461.4	-162.0
2012	298.4	500.4	-202.0
2013	313.2	467.5	-154.3
2014	318.2	462.9	-144.7
2015	310.3	447.9	-137.6

The top 10 commodity exports in 2014 were as follows:

Rank	Commodity	HS Code	Value (US$ billion)	Share (%)
1	Refined Petroleum	27	61.2	19.2
2	Gems, precious metals, coins	71	41.2	13
3	Vehicles	87	14.5	4.6
4	Machines, engines, pumps	85	13.6	4.3
5	Organic chemicals	29	12.1	3.8
6	Pharmaceuticals	30	11.7	3.7
7	Cereals	10	10.1	3.2
8	Iron and steel	72	9.1	2.9
9	Clothing (not knit or crotchet)	58	9.1	2.9
10	Electronics	85	9.1	2.8

The top 10 commodity imports in 2014 were as follows:

Rank	Commodity	HS Code	Value (US$ billion)	Share (%)
1	Oil	27	177.5	38.3
2	Gems, precious metals, coins	71	60	13
3	Electronics	85	32	6.9
4	Machines, engines, pumps	85	31.2	6.7
5	Organic chemicals	29	18.3	4
6	Plastics	39	11.8	2.6
7	Iron and steel	72	11.4	2.5
8	Animal/vegetable fats and oils	15	10.7	2.3
9	Ores, slag and ash	26	7.4	1.6
10	Medical and technical equipment	90	7.1	1.5

Trading partners

Further information: List of the largest trading partners of India

India's largest trading partners in descending order of value of total trade are the United Arab Emirates, China, the United States, Saudi Arabia, Switzerland, Singapore, Germany, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Iraq and Japan.

See also

• Economy of India
• Foreign relations of India

External links

• Directorate General of Foreign Trade