Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: Driven by a fall in gold, oil, and coal imports, and despite steep US tariffs, India’s trade deficit narrowed from USD 41.68 billion in October to USD 24.53 billion in November 2025, according to the official data released by the government on Monday.
Trade, including merchandise and services, recorded exports of USD 73.99 billion in November, up from USD 64.05 billion in the same month last year. Imports during the period declined marginally to USD 80.63 billion from USD 81.11 billion. The overall trade deficit narrowed sharply to USD 6.64 billion in November 2025, compared to a deficit of USD 17.06 billion in November 2024, the media reported.
In the merchandise sector, exports increased significantly from USD 31.94 billion in November 2024 to USD 38.13 billion in November 2025, highest in over 10 years, reflecting stronger outbound shipments. Merchandise imports moderated slightly, falling from USD 63.87 billion to USD .62.66 billion over the same period. This combination of higher exports and lower imports contributed positively to the overall trade balance.
The services sector also witnessed growth in rising from USD 32.11 billion in November 2024 to USD 35.86 billion in November 2025, indicating continued strength in India’s services-driven export sector. Services imports increased marginally from USD 17.25 billion to USD17.96 billion during the period.
Union Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said, “Our record export has been USD 38.13 billion, the highest in the last 10 years. In November, we have never crossed the USD 38 billion figure.”
“Also, the imports are down by 1.88 percent. There is an import trend, which is in the positive territory, but this month, it is a minus 1.8” he said.
“The import merchandise has declined from USD 31.92 billion last year, to USD 24.53 billion. Major drivers, if you look at what has actually led to these high fees, is engineering export growth of 23.8 percent, electronic goods growth of 39 percent, gems and jewelry growth of 27.8 percent.”
As per the data, India’s exports to China registered a significant increase during the April-November 2025 period, compared to the corresponding period of the previous year. Merchandise exports to China rose from USD 9.20 billion during April-November 2024 to USD 12.22 billion during April-November 2025, reflecting a growth of about 32.83 percent.
On a monthly basis, exports to China during 2025-26 showed an overall upward trend despite some fluctuations. Exports stood at USD 1.39 billion in April 2025 and increased to USD 1.62 billion in May before easing slightly to USD 1.37 billion in June. In July and August, exports moderated to USD 1.34 billion and USD 1.21 billion respectively, indicating a temporary slowdown during the mid-year period.
India’s trade deficit narrowed to USD 24.53 billion in November from USD 41.68 billion in October.
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