India's Imports from UAE Surge 70% in October: Trade Deficit Widens

New Delhi, Nov 15 (PTI) India's imports from its free trade agreement partner UAE have jumped by 70.37 per cent year-on-year to USD 7.2 billion in October, leaving a trade deficit of about USD 3.5 billion during that month, according to the commerce ministry data.

The deficit, the difference between imports and exports, was USD 2.47 billion in September.

Cumulatively also, the imports from the UAE during April-October rose by 55.12 per cent to USD 38.64 billion against USD 24.91 billion in the same period previous fiscal, while exports were up by 15.86 per cent year-on-year to USD 20.93 billion compared to USD 18 billion in April-October 2023-24.

The trade deficit during the seven-month period has widened to USD 17.71 billion from USD 6.85 billion in the same period a year ago.

The FTA between India and the UAE came into effect in May 2022.

According to the data, India's imports from UAE rose by 49.22 per cent to USD 5.38 billion in September and 72.7 per cent to USD 6.38 billion in August.

Exports, on the other hand, increased by 23.75 per cent to USD 2.91 billion in September and 3.16 per cent to USD 2.84 billion in August.

In a recent meeting last month, India raised its concerns over the jump in imports of silver products, platinum alloy, and dry dates from the UAE and urged the country to ensure that the rules are not circumvented under the Free Trade Agreement (FTA).

The Emirates has agreed to examine concerns raised by the Indian counterparts.

The UAE is the third-largest trading partner of India with USD 83.65 billion bilateral trade in 2023-24.

The major goods imported include mineral oil, chemicals, essential oils and perfumes, precious and semi-precious stones, iron and steel products, copper, nickel and aluminium goods.