{"id":157746,"date":"2025-03-05T19:35:03","date_gmt":"2025-03-05T14:05:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/?post_type=current-affairs&#038;p=157746"},"modified":"2025-03-05T19:35:03","modified_gmt":"2025-03-05T14:05:03","slug":"agricultural-trade-surplus-in-india","status":"publish","type":"current-affairs","link":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/current-affairs\/agricultural-trade-surplus-in-india","title":{"rendered":"Shrinking Agricultural Trade Surplus in India"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India\u2019s agricultural trade surplus has thus <\/span><b>reduced from $10.6 billion <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">in April-December 2023-24 to<\/span><b> $8.2 billion <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">for the corresponding nine months of the current fiscal (April-March)<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>Recent Trends in Agricultural Exports<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India\u2019s agricultural exports grew by 6.5% from $35.2 billion (April-December 2023) to $37.5 billion (April-December 2024).<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, agricultural imports surged by 18.7%, rising from $24.6 billion to $29.3 billion in the same period leading to decline in trade surplus.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>Factors Driving Agricultural Exports<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>High demand<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for rice, spices, coffee, and tobacco has kept exports stable.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Basmati rice exports are expected to reach new highs in 2024-25,<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> reinforcing India\u2019s global leadership.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Global supply shortages (e.g., drought in Brazil, typhoons in Vietnam)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> have benefitted Indian coffee and tobacco exports.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>India remains the top exporter<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of <\/span><b>chilli, mint, cumin, turmeric, coriander, and fennel<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>Challenges in Agricultural Trade<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<h3><span style=\"font-size: 16pt;\"><b>Decline in Major Exports<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Marine product exports fell <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">from $8.1 billion (2022-23) to $7.4 billion (2023-24), mainly due to lower demand in the US, China, and EU.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Sugar exports dropped<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> from $5.8 billion (2022-23) to $2.8 billion (2023-24) due to government <\/span><b>restrictions on food security concerns.<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Wheat exports<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which were $2.1 billion in 2021-22, have almost <\/span><b>stopped due to similar restrictions.<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Cotton exports have plummeted,<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> from $4.3 billion (2011-12) to just $1.1 billion (2023-24).<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span style=\"font-size: 16pt;\"><b>Rising Imports Impacting Trade Surplus<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Pulses imports surged due to poor domestic production<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, expected to exceed $5 billion in 2024-25.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Edible oil imports remain high,<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> expected to be among the costliest years after 2021-22 ($19 billion) and 2022-23 ($20.8 billion).<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>India has turned into a net importer of pepper and cardamom<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, despite being a major spice exporter.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span style=\"font-size: 16pt;\"><b>Government Initiatives to Boost Agri Exports<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Export restrictions eased on non-basmati rice<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, though curbs on broken rice exports remain.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Encouraging value-added exports <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">in spices, coffee, and processed food.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Free trade agreements (FTAs) <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">with major markets to improve export competitiveness.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Investment in agri-infrastructure,<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> including cold storage and logistics, to support perishable exports.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Promotion of organic farming and GI-tagged products<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to expand global market access.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India\u2019s agricultural exports remain strong, but rising imports and government restrictions on key commodities are shrinking the trade surplus. A balanced policy approach is needed to ensure food security while maintaining export competitiveness.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"vc_table_green\"><\/p>\n<table style=\"width: 99.6375%;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 111.19%; text-align: center;\" colspan=\"2\"><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>Also Read<\/b><\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 49.797%; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/editorial-analysis\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>UPSC Daily Editorials<\/b><\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 61.393%; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/daily-current-affairs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>UPSC Daily Current Affairs<\/b><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 49.797%; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/quiz\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>Daily Current Affairs Quiz<\/b><\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 61.393%; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/mains-answer-writing\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>Daily Main Answer Writing<\/b><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 49.797%; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/store.pw.live\/govt-entrance-exams\/upsc-books\/upsc-previous-year-papers?utm_source=SEO&#038;utm_medium=PW+Live&#038;utm_campaign=UPSC+Previous+Year+Papers\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>Check Out Previous Years Papers From PW Store<\/b><\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 61.393%; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/upsc-test-series-courses\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>UPSC Test Series<\/b><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 49.797%; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/store.pw.live\/govt-entrance-exams\/upsc-books\/upsc-textbooks?utm_source=SEO&#038;utm_medium=PW+Live&#038;utm_campaign=UPSC+Textbooks\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>Check Out UPSC NCERT Textbooks From PW Store<\/b><\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 61.393%; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/store.pw.live\/govt-entrance-exams\/upsc-books\/upsc-modules?utm_source=SEO&#038;utm_medium=PW+Live&#038;utm_campaign=UPSC+Modules\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>Check Out UPSC Modules From PW Store<\/b><\/a><b>\u00a0<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>India\u2019s agricultural trade surplus has thus reduced from $10.6 billion in April-December 2023-24 to $8.2 billion for the corresponding nine months of the current fiscal (April-March)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":157722,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_lock_modified_date":false,"footnotes":""},"tags":[],"paper-wise":[2089],"subject":[2100],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/current-affairs\/157746"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/current-affairs"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/current-affairs"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=157746"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/current-affairs\/157746\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":157751,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/current-affairs\/157746\/revisions\/157751"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/157722"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=157746"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=157746"},{"taxonomy":"paper-wise","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/paper-wise?post=157746"},{"taxonomy":"subject","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/subject?post=157746"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}