Defence Exports
Context:
Defence exports reached an all-time high of Rs 21,083 crore in FY 2023-24.
Relevance:
GS-03 (Economy, Security)
Highlights:
- The latest data shows a 32.5% increase compared to the previous FY, which stood at Rs 15,920 crore.
- Recent statistics suggest that defense exports have increased by 31 times over the past decade in comparison to FY 2013-14.
- The private sector and the DPSUs have contributed about 60% and 40% respectively.
- There has also been a rise in the number of export authorisations issued to the defence exporters during FY 2023-24 (from 1,414 in FY 2022-23 to 1,507 in FY 2023-24).
- The significant increase in the exports is attributed to ease of doing business initiatives, policy reforms and advanced digital solutions.
Facts for Prelims:
- The top exports of India are Refined Petroleum ($86.2B), Diamonds ($25.9B), Packaged Medicaments ($19.5B), Jewellery ($12.6B), and Rice ($11.1B), exporting mostly to United States ($82.9B), United Arab Emirates ($31.6B), Netherlands ($17.6B), China ($15.3B), and Bangladesh ($13.8B).
- The top imports of India are Crude Petroleum ($170B), Coal Briquettes ($58.7B), Gold ($35.8B), Petroleum Gas ($32B), and Diamonds ($26.1B), importing mostly from China ($110B), United Arab Emirates ($51B), United States ($48.5B), Saudi Arabia ($46.2B), and Russia ($40.4B).
- As of January 2024, India exported $36.9B and imported $53.4B, resulting in a negative trade balance of $16.5B.
- Between January 2023 and January 2024 the exports of India have increased by $1.19B (3.32%) from $35.7B to $36.9B, while imports increased by $1.3B (2.49%) from $52.1B to $53.4B.
- As of January 2024, India exported mostly to United States ($6.07B), United Arab Emirates ($3.31B), Singapore ($2.04B), Netherlands ($1.75B), and China ($1.55B), and imported mostly from China ($8.96B), Russia ($5.72B), United Arab Emirates ($4.46B), Iraq ($2.64B), and United States ($2.35B).
