Exports grow 45% in August, trade deficit at 4-month high

India’s exports grew to $33.1 billion in August, 45% higher than last year, but a faster pace of increase in imports resulted in trade deficit widening to $13.9 billion, the highest since April.
Although exports are nearly $2 billion lower than July, when it hit a monthly record of $35.4 billion, August’s level is line with the asking rate required to touch the target of $400 billion for the current financial year. During April-August, exports were estimated at $163.7 billion, which means that the value of monthly shipments needs to be of the order of $33.7 billion during the remaining seven months of the year.