India's Exports To Reach $450 Billion By FY24 End Despite Challenges, Says FIEO President

FIEO President, Ashwani Kumar, noted that it remained critical to address the Rea Sea crisis challenges by ensuring that marine insurance is available and freight charges are increased rationally

India’s merchandise exports are projected to touch $450 billion by the end of the current fiscal year, FIEO President, Ashwani Kumar, said on Tuesday. The newly elected president of the Federation of Indian Exports Organisation (FIEO) said that this surge was despite the geo-political concerns present such as the Red Sea crisis. 

Kumar noted that it remained critical to address the Rea Sea crisis challenges by ensuring that marine insurance is available and freight charges are increased rationally, reported PTI. The executive stressed that the exporting sector, specially the MSMEs, needs the availability of easy and economical credit to help enhance exports.

For providing a push to the sector, he said that it needs ‘marketing support’ and ‘early conclusion of free trade agreements such as with the UK and Oman will also help push the outbound shipments’. 

Elaborating on the issues plaguing the MSMEs, Kumar noted, “I will focus on addressing issues of MSMEs as they are going to play. They will play a key role in achieving the $1 trillion goods export target by 2030. They are the backbone of the economy and they are facing certain issues pertaining to credit. I would urge banks to come forward in extending support to these units.”

The exporters’ body president maintained that while the organisation was exploring more opportunities in regions such as Latin America and Africa, challenges remained. However, he expressed optimism that the industry will reach $450 billion in exports in the current financial year. 

Notably, exports climbed 12 per cent in February to hit $41.40 billion, while during the April-February 2023-24 period, exports reached $395 billion, he stated. “This was an impressive increase despite the Red Sea crisis, tight monetary stance by the developed world and falling commodity prices. This reflects the resilience of the exporting community, who have continuously been braving such odds since the Russia-Ukraine war,” he added.