The Hindu Business Line : Gem & jewellery exports rise 43 pc in April-August

TRADITIONAL export items such as gems and jewellery, chemicals and related products, engineering goods and textiles, which account for 67 per cent of the country's aggregate exports clocked double-digit growth during the first five months of the current fiscal to help the overall export register a 34 per cent growth in dollar terms.

Disaggregated trade data compiled by the Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics (DGCI&S) for the period under review show that gems and jewellery with a weight of 18.14 per cent in overall exports logged a robust 43.63 per cent growth at $5,363.46 million during April to August 2004, against $3,734.34 million in the corresponding months of 2003.

Chemicals and related products (weight 15.07 per cent) grew by 27.80 per cent at $4,455.81 million during the period under review, against $3,486.64 million in the comparable months of 2003. Engineering goods (17.12 per cent) notched up 39.26 per cent growth at $5,062.38 million, against $3,635.18 million in the corresponding months of 2003.

Textile exports (16.25 per cent) which did not perform well last year had done exceedingly well in the run-up to the removal of the quota regime that took place at end-December 2004 by registering an export growth of 13.36 per cent at $4,805.72 million during April-August 2004 against $4,239.39 million in the corresponding months of 2003.

Even agricultural and allied product exports (7.57 per cent) did well during the period under review as they marked a growth of 24.48 per cent at $2,237.30 million, against $1,797.37 million, while plantation sector with a minuscule share of 0.85 per cent in overall exports performed well after several years of dull growth by clocking a growth of 13.16 per cent at $252.51 million, against $223.15 million.

Overall, exports during the first five months of the current fiscal recorded a growth of 33.80 per cent at $29,572.73 million, against $22,101.46 million.

Destination-wise, Asia and Oceania, which absorbs as much as 46 per cent of the country's aggregate exports, registered a growth of 39.48 per cent at $13,570.61 million, against $9,729.34 million, while exports to West Europe accounting for a share of 24.57 per cent posted a growth of 28.14 per cent at $7,265.97 million, against $5,670.26 million.

Exports to the Americas, which account for a share of 21.77 per cent in total exports, registered a growth of 30 per cent at $6,438.66 million, against $4,962.15 million.

On the import front, bulk imports, which account for as much as 42.17 per cent in total imports logged a growth of 50 per cent during the period under review at $16,314.69 million, against $10,893.37 million. Import of machinery with a share of 8.34 per cent in total exports grew by 23.36 per cent at $3,322.43 million against $2,693.36 million.

There has been a distinct decline in the import of pulses, which skidded from a level of $211.41million during the first five months of 2003-04 to $148.43 million during the period under review this fiscal.

Gold and silver import with a weight of 9.24 in overall imports registered a growth of 25 per cent at $3,574.60 millionagainst $2,860.51 million.

However, import of edible oil (2.44 per cent weight) went down from $1,104.07 million during April-August 2003 to $943.06 million during April-August 2004. Overall, imports during the period under review grew substantially by 36 per cent at $38,686.94 million against $28,501.53 million.

Destination-wise, India, which sourced bulk of its imports at 33.89 per cent in total imports from Asia and Oceania, saw import from this region growing by a hefty 45.30 per cent at $13,109.60 million, against $9,022.69 million. Imports from West Europe (21.96 per cent of total imports) grew by 18.39 per cent at $8,496.01 million, against $7,176.32 million. Imports from the Americas (7.76 per cent) grew by almost 16 per cent at $3,001.16 million, against $2,589.02 million.

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