Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday said the country's merchandise and services exports are estimated to cross $760 billion in the current fiscal ending March 31. Exports grew to $676 billion in 2021-22 from $500 billion. Speaking at the annual session of Assocham here, Goyal said that at a time when the whole world is facing recession, high inflation and elevated interest rates, India is performing well.
Goyal stressed that over the last 9 years, the focus of the Modi-government has been on building the foundation blocks which are necessary for an economy to have many years of uninterrupted and sustainable growth. Various steps being take by the government are making India more cost competitive, be it the huge investment in infrastructure coupled with logistics, technological advancement, or the PM GatiShakti, he said.
He also said the performance of India's global trade has proved the naysayers wrong. "I can say with great pride, happiness, and thanks to all your efforts that India has crossed in its 75th year of independence, as we speak today, $750 billion of exports," he said, adding the financial year is expected to end with a total exports (merchandise and services) of about $760 billion.
The minister also said the FTAs (Free Trade Agreements) with the UAE and Australia have been welcomed by the industry. The speed of India's FTAs did not come at the cost of compromising the quality of agreements and it was done after extensive stakeholder consultation, he noted.
"We have a string of countries from across the globe wanting to engage with India today to expand and deepen ties," Goyal said and added the world recognises the delta of opportunities that India offers. Leveraging on the G20 Presidency and the edge India has today, the need of the hour is speedy and aggressive outreach to global markets with focus on investment, trade, technology and tourism, the minister said.
