India’s exports top $720 billion in FY26 so far; services fuel 6% growth – Firstpost

India’s cumulative exports rose 6.15 per cent year-on-year to $720.76 billion during April–January 2025–26, compared with $679.02 billion in the corresponding period last fiscal year, reflecting steady resilience in a challenging global trade environment, according to data released by the government.

The growth has been supported by strong performance in both merchandise and services exports, with services continuing to act as the key driver.

Services exports stood at $354.13 billion in April–January FY26, registering a robust 10.57% increase from $320.28 billion in the year-ago period. In FY25, services exports had already touched an all-time high of $387.5 billion, generating a trade surplus of $188.8 billion and reinforcing India’s position as a global hub for technology, business and professional services.

On the merchandise side, exports recorded broad-based growth across sectors. Electronics emerged as one of the fastest-growing categories, underlining India’s push into high-value manufacturing. Pharmaceuticals, engineering goods, petroleum products, textiles and automobiles also contributed significantly to overall export expansion.

Defence exports reached a record Rs 23,622 crore in FY25, reflecting India’s expanding footprint in advanced manufacturing and strategic sectors.

India’s export resilience has also been aided by diversification across products and markets. According to UNCTAD trade diversity indices, India ranked among the top five Global South economies in product diversification and among the top three in trade partnership diversity.

Over the past three years, India has concluded nine free trade agreements covering 38 countries, expanding preferential access to markets representing nearly 70 per cent of global GDP. Policymakers have emphasised strengthening domestic manufacturing, expanding trade finance access, and deepening global partnerships to sustain export momentum.