‘Braving difficulties’. Engineering exports will surpass last year’s achievement 

Engineering goods exports from India in FY23 will surpass the achievement of FY22, despite India not being in the market for a good seven months during the current year, says Arun Kumar Gadoria, Chairman, Engineering Export Promotion Council (EEPC), a body set up by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. 

In FY22, Indian manufacturers of engineering goods exported products worth $112 billion, which was about a fourth of the total merchandise exports of around $420 billion. But in the current year, not only has the European and the American markets been under the grip of a slowdown consequent to the Ukraine-Russia war but also because steel exports were hit by an export duty that was in vogue between May and November 2022. 

Also read: Engineering goods exports slip 9.8 per cent in January to $8.4 billion amid slowdown in EU, China

However, exports are now picking up and “we hope to catch up”. Garodia’s confidence also stemmed from the fact that India’s engineering exports in the nine months to December 2022 had already crossed the $90 billion mark. 

Arun Kumar Garodia, Chairman, EEPC India and Grace L Pachuau, Additional Commissioner of Industries & Commerce, Govt of Tamil Nadu, at a press conference in connection with the International Engineering Sourcing Show, in Chennai on Thursday | Photo Credit: BIJOY GHOSH

He was here in connection with the 10^th edition of the International Engineering Sourcing Show (IESS), which is to be held here between March 16 and 18. The event, which brings together MSMEs and foreign buyers, is being held in Chennai for the 5^th time. Under a scheme financially supported by the Government of Tamil Nadu, the EEPC would bring in 300 overseas buyers from 60 countries, part-paying for their travel and stay. 

Also read: Export initiatives in Budget will sustain growth momentum

Garodia observed that India’s exports faced several headwinds, such as a slowdown in the key markets of the US and the EU, which might slip into a recession, Covid-hit China not being fully up as yet, and the possibility of the EU imposing a carbon border tax. However, noting that in his career he had faced such issues several times, Garodia said that India would be able to brave these difficulties, primarily because India’s stature in the world is now pretty high, and more and more Indian companies are getting into exports. 

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