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Apr 25, 2024 03:06 PM IST
In absolute value terms, India was the second top performer in 2023 with $345 billion worth of services exports, while China achieved $381 billion
NEW DELHI: India’s annual services export grew at 11.4% in 2023 against the global average of 8.9% and surpassed China which witnessed a 10.1% contraction in the year, according to the quarterly bulletin released by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
Robust services trade helped India to compensate for a 3.11% year-on-year contraction in merchandise exports in FY2024 (FILE PHOTO/MINT) In absolute value terms, India was the second top performer in 2023 with $345 billion worth of services exports, while China achieved $381 billion, the report released earlier this month said.
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“With 8.9% annual rise in current dollar values, world services exports surpassed $7.9 trillion in 2023,” it said. According to the report, the annual global growth was mainly because of increased international travel receipts and digital services trade.
Robust services trade helped India to compensate for a 3.11% year-on-year contraction in merchandise exports in FY2024 and post a record $776.68 billion overall exports (goods and services combined) in the financial year ended March 31, according to the trade data released by the commerce ministry on April 15. Services exports grew because of better performance of sectors such as travel and tourism, transport, medical and hospitality.
While India’s data covered the financial year (April 2023-March 2024), UNCTAD followed the calendar year system (January-December 2023). The overall trade data for FY24 is provisional because services data for March is an extrapolation of the previous month’s numbers as data for the services sector are released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) with a lag.
India’s merchandise exports fell to $437.06 billion in FY24, while services exports grew by 4.4% to a record $339.62 billion in the fiscal year. In services, India saw an expansion in exports and a contraction of imports. Services exports in 2023-24 were estimated at $339.62 billion, 4.39% up from $325.33 billion achieved in 2022-23. Services imports were estimated at $177.56 billion in FY24 compared to $182.05 billion in FY23, a contraction of 2.46%.
The UNCTAD report said India’s annual services imports contracted marginally by 0.4% in 2023 to $248 billion, while the same saw a surge of 18.7% ($552 billion) in China.
According to the RBI bulletin released on April 23, India’s services export growth not only outpaced merchandise export growth over the last three decades but also captured a larger share of world exports. “An analysis of India’s revealed comparative advantage in services exports indicates that it has an edge in telecom and IT services. The significant growth in India’s software and business services exports in recent years is a reflection of the expansion of global capability centres (GCCs) in India and the rise in digital delivery of services,” it said.
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