India’s services exports narrow gap with goods trade as overall trade grows 5.4% in Q4FY26: NITI Aayog

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New Delhi: India’s trade grew at a healthy 5.4 per cent in Q4FY26 despite a slowdown in merchandise exports on strong growth in services exports and widening services trade surplus, as per the Trade Watch Quarterly report released by NITI Aayog on Tuesday.

According to the report, India’s merchandise trade showed mixed trends, with exports declining 2.8 per cent to USD 112.03 billion, while imports surged 12 per cent to USD 195 billion. However, India continued to maintain a strong services trade surplus of USD 60.4 billion, supported by a 9 per cent rise in services exports to USD 111 billion, compared with a 4.1 per cent increase in services imports to USD 50.7 billion.

India’s “total trade grew at 5.4% in Q4, FY2026, reaching USD 1.84 trillion,” as per the report.

“Services exports remained a key pillar of external sector stability, with the services surplus rising from USD 47.9 billion in Q1 to USD 60.4 billion in Q4, helping offset the merchandise trade deficit,” the report added.

The report further highlighted, India’s services exports are increasingly narrowing the gap with merchandise exports. In FY2026, services exports stood at USD 421 billion, compared with merchandise exports of USD 442 billion.

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It also added that “India remained the world’s eighth-largest services exporter in 2025” with its worldwide services imports nearly doubling from USD 5.1 trillion in 2015 to USD 9.6 trillion in 2025.

During the same period, “India’s Exports almost tripled from USD 156 billion in 2015 to USD 416 billion in 2025. “India’s CAGR is 10.3%, outperforming the global average growth of 6.6%,” it said.

India has also strengthened its position in telecom and IT services, with its global share increasing from 9.5 per cent to 14.9 per cent. Additionally, India’s services export markets have become more diversified, with North America’s share declining from 60 per cent to 54 per cent, while Europe’s share increased from 25 per cent to 33 per cent.

Apart from this, India strengthened its position in formulated drugs (HS 3004), with its global export share increasing from 3.2 per cent to 4 per cent during 2015 and 2025. India’s pharmaceutical exports stood at USD 25.8 billion in 2025, with formulated drugs accounting for the majority at USD 22 billion.

(Source: ANI)

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