The effects of India’s economic reforms and trade facilitation measures, ease of doing exports, and the National Single Window System have become clearly visible. Export growth, particularly in the post-COVID years, has risen to new highs every year, proving the effectiveness and strong implementation of the government's policies. PLI has been a major breakthrough for exporters' resilience and competitiveness in recent years.

The latest trade data for April-July 2026 has provided an inspiring picture of India’s exports. Exports for the period of April-July 2026 grew by 13% from USD 279.6 billion in the period of April-July 2025 to USD 316.4 billion in the period of April-July 2026.

India’s recent breakthrough in exports growth

Source: Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Government of India

The momentum became particularly evident in July 2026. India’s total exports of merchandise and services were estimated at USD 80 billion, up 13% from USD 70 billion in July 2025. While imports also increased, the acceleration in exports was notable, reflecting stronger global demand for a diverse range of Indian products, including petroleum products, engineering goods, electronics, chemicals, textiles and other manufactured goods.

Merchandise exports provide the biggest thrust

The most striking feature of the latest data is the acceleration in merchandise exports. During April–July 2026-27, merchandise exports rose to USD 173.7 billion, compared with USD 148.4 billion a year earlier, a growth of 17%. This is considerably faster than the growth in total exports, indicating that India's goods-exporting sectors are gaining traction in international markets.

July 2026 exports are more encouraging, as merchandise exports show strong resilience, growing 19.6% from USD 36.9 billion in July 2025 to USD 44.2 billion in July 2026. Overall, during the period April–July 2026, it has made USD 25 billion in incremental exports over the same period last year.

Electronics emerge as a powerful new export driver

Among the most encouraging developments is the rapid rise in electronic goods exports. In July 2026, electronic goods exports rose by an impressive 57%, from USD 4 billion in July 2025 to USD 6 billion in July 2026. This is strategically important for India. Electronics constitute a relatively high-value manufacturing segment with strong links to global supply chains. The sharp increase indicates that Indian manufacturing capabilities are increasingly meeting international demand.

The electronics sector's performance also strengthens the broader narrative of India's manufacturing transformation. Rather than relying predominantly on traditional exports, India is gradually expanding its presence in technology-intensive and globally integrated industries. Sustaining this trend could help increase the share of manufactured and technology-linked products in India's overall export basket.

Engineering exports strengthen India’s manufacturing footprint

Engineering goods remain a pillar of India's merchandise exports. Exports of engineering goods rose by around 18% in July 2026, from USD 10.4 billion in July 2025 to USD 12.2 billion. The significance of engineering exports extends beyond their immediate contribution to foreign exchange earnings. Engineering products span a wide manufacturing ecosystem, including machinery, industrial equipment, automobiles and components, metal products, and other capital and intermediate goods. Their strong performance therefore signals growing competitiveness across India's industrial base.

A sustained rise in engineering exports can also create multiplier effects through employment, investment, technology adoption and integration with international production networks. The latest numbers suggest that India's industrial capabilities are increasingly finding markets beyond domestic demand.

Petroleum products add further momentum

Petroleum products were another major contributor to the July export surge. Exports of petroleum products rose by 67.6%, from USD 4.13 billion in July 2025 to USD 6.9 billion in July 2026. This sharp rise contributed significantly to overall merchandise-export growth. However, a key feature of the data is that export momentum remains evident even after excluding petroleum. Cumulative non-petroleum exports for April–July 2026-27 reached USD 143.6 billion, up 12.8% from USD 127.3 billion in the corresponding period of 2025-26.

This distinction is crucial. It shows that India's export expansion cannot be attributed solely to petroleum-related movements. A substantial share of the growth is coming from the country's broader manufacturing and non-petroleum export base.

Chemicals and textiles maintain their relevance

India’s traditional strengths are also contributing to the export revival. Exports of organic and inorganic chemicals rose by 14.3%, from USD 2.45 billion in July 2025 to USD 2.80 billion in July 2026. Meanwhile, exports of cotton yarn, fabrics, made-ups and handloom products rose by 8.40%, from USD 1.02 billion to USD 1.11 billion. These developments highlight the breadth of India's export basket. While electronics and engineering are emerging growth areas, chemicals and textiles remain a strong foundation. The combination of established export sectors and newer high-growth industries creates greater resilience and diversification.

Non-petroleum and non-gems exports show underlying strength

Another encouraging indicator is the performance of exports excluding petroleum and gems and jewellery. These exports totalled USD 134 billion in April–July 2026-27, compared with USD 118.3 billion in April–July 2025-26. In July alone, non-petroleum and non-gems and jewellery exports totalled USD 35 billion, up from USD 30.5 billion a year earlier. This is perhaps one of the strongest indicators of underlying momentum in India's export economy. It shows that demand is expanding across a broad range of goods rather than being concentrated in petroleum or precious-metal-related trade.

Services remain India’s second-largest engine of exports

India's export performance cannot be understood without recognising the continued strength of services. During April–July 2026-27, services exports were estimated at USD 142.6 billion, compared with USD 131 billion in the corresponding period of 2025-26. Services imports rose from USD 66.8 billion to USD 73.47 billion. In July 2026, services exports were estimated at USD 35.89 billion, compared with USD 33.74 billion in July 2025.

The combined performance of merchandise and services gives India a distinctive advantage. Manufacturing exports generate scale, industrial employment and integration with global supply chains, while services exports provide high-value foreign exchange earnings and strengthen India's position in the global digital and knowledge economy.

The road ahead: from export momentum to export competitiveness

India has presented an inspiring picture of the export growth trajectory; despite global headwinds and slowing global growth, the demand for Indian products remains strong. Now the strategy going ahead should focus on supporting capacity-building measures for exporters and further reducing the costs of doing business in India.

Indian exporters will need to improve logistics competitiveness, speed up customs processes, ensure reliable infrastructure, secure access to affordable finance, upgrade technology and deepen integration into global value chains. Continued diversification of markets will also be important to reduce exposure to shocks in individual economies.

India's export strategy must increasingly focus not merely on exporting more, but on exporting higher-value, more sophisticated and more globally competitive products. Electronics, engineering goods, chemicals and other technology-oriented industries can play a central role in this transition.

The latest export numbers provide a strong foundation for that ambition. Global demand for Indian products is clearly gaining momentum, and India's merchandise sectors are increasingly complementing its globally competitive services economy.

Conclusion

India has adopted a strategy of diversification to avoid dependence on a single market, and this strategy has strengthened as supply chains shift worldwide and India becomes more visible with its competitive, low-cost, high-quality products. Actually, this is a reflection of the efficiency of Indian exporters and strong hand-holding provided by the government.

In a nutshell, India is not merely exporting more; it is steadily expanding the range, scale and sophistication of its exports to the world. If stronger competitiveness, deeper global value-chain integration vis-à-vis new FTAs, and continued diversification support the current momentum, exports can become an even more powerful engine for manufacturing, investment, employment, and economic growth. Going ahead, India is on track to become a USD 1 trillion exports economy in 2026-27, as envisioned by the Government of India; further, the effects of recently signed FTAs are expected to deliver a major breakthrough toward India becoming a USD 2 trillion exports economy by 2030.

(Dr. S.P. Sharma is Chief Economist, ASSOCHAM and Managing Director, Chief Economist, NDIM NEO Research Centre-NNRC • Former Chief Economist, PHDCCI (PHD Chamber of Commerce and industry, India)

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