India’s oil imports fall 35% in July
India’s oil imports contracted to $9.48 billion in July, registering almost 35% fall from the level of $14.57 billion recorded during the same month a year ago. This has led to a reduction in the country’s trade deficit. According to the latest government data, oil imports during July, 2015 were valued at $9.48 billion, down 34.91% from that of the corresponding period last year. The country’s total oil import during April-July has also come down by 37.91% to $34.14 billion from $54.99 billion recorded in the first four months of the last fiscal. Inbound shipment of crude oil has the largest contribution to India’s overall import bill. But falling oil prices in the international market in the past one year have helped the country to reduce the trade gap by more than $2 billion in the first four months as compared to the corresponding period of the last financial year. “The trade deficit for April-July, 2015-16 was estimated at $45038.12 million which was lower than the deficit of $47548.74 million during April-July, 2014-15,” Commerce Ministry said in a statement. However, the country's non-oil imports during July were estimated at $26.46billion which was 3.8% higher than $25.49 billion in July last year. Import of non-petroleum items during April-July this year was valued at $100.72 billion, up 2.48% from $98.28 billion during the same period last year, the government data said. At the same time, consumption of petroleum products has witnessed an upward trend. As per the Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC), a wing of the Petroleum Ministry, the consumption has increased by 5.2% between April and June compared to the corresponding period a year ago. In June this year, the consumption of petroleum products was up 2.8%. During the last financial year, the country’s total oil import was 189 million tonnes worth around $112 billion. India’s exports in July dropped by10.3% to $23.13 billion from $25.79 billion during the same month last year. The export has been witnessing fall for the past eight months, the rate of decline this time was less than that of the previous month. In June, exports witnessed a fall of 15.82%. Now, with the rise in manufacturing and container traffic, exporters expect a positive trend in India’s outbound shipment in the coming months. “The improvement in manufacturing for the month of June from 2.9% in 2014 to 4.6% in 2015 will also support exports in coming months as there is a lead time between manufacturing growth and exports,” said S C Ralhan, President of the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO).
August 17, 2015 | 2:46pm IST.
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