Synopsis
Major export commodities which have recorded positive growth in April include gems and jewellery, jute, carpet, handicrafts, leather, electronic goods, oil meals, cashew, engineering, petroleum products, marine products and chemicals.
Last year India was under a strict national lockdown to curb the spread of the coronavirus, leading to a significant reduction in international trade volumes.
India s exports in April jumped nearly three-folds to USD 30.21 billion from USD 10.17 billion in the same month last year, according to commerce ministry s preliminary data released on Sunday.
Imports too rose to USD 45.45 billion last month as against USD 17.09 billion in April 2020. India is thus a net importer in April with a trade deficit of USD 15.24 billion, which increased by 120.34 per cent over the trade deficit of USD 6.92 billion in April 2020, the ministry said in a statement.
The outgoing Trump administration declassified a report which amply describes the growing importance of India in the Indo-Pacific region. As per the United States Strategic Framework for the Indo-Pacific (henceforth, the Framework), it envisioned accelerating India s rise , blocking China from establishing illiberal spheres of influence , and maintaining US strategic primacy in the region. The Framework speaks of the need to align our [US] Indo-Pacific strategy with those of Australia, India and Japan , of deepening trilateral cooperation with Japan and Australia, and a quadrilateral security relationship with India. In early 2018, President Donald Trump endorsed a strategy for the Indo-Pacific developed by his National Security Council (NSC) through the course of 2017. Its release sheds light on the geopolitical and security challenges soon to be inherited by the Biden administration.