India's exports in February 2017 grew 17.48 per cent compared to February 2016. However, imports during the month under review increased by 21.76 per cent. Non-petroleum and non-gem and jewelry exports in February 2017 grew by 20.15 per cent compared to February 2016.

Oil imports grew by a massive 60.02 per cent. Non-oil imports in February were up by 13.65 per cent. For the April-February period, exports rose marginally by 2.52 per cent. Imports fell 3.67 per cent.

The merchandise trade deficit cumulatively for April-February, however, declined by 16.65 per cent against the same period the previous year. The overall trade deficit for April-February is estimated at $41.8 billion, which is a 24 per cent fall from the level of $55.02 billion during the same period last year.

For December 2016, exports to the US grew by 5.61 per cent, grew by 1.68 percent to EU and grew by 10.87 percent to Japan but fell by 6.20 per cent to China over the corresponding period of the previous year. Services exports during January 2017 were valued at $13.57 billion while imports stood at $8.4 billion, resulting in a positive trade balance of $5.16 billion.