Merchandise exports
- How often
- Every monthAbout the 15th of the following month
- Next release
- Mon 16 NovIn 4 days · expected · 5:00 PM
September 2026, up from $43.81 bn in August 2026.
Events on this chart
Source: Commerce, released 15 Oct 2026 · Chart: Clarity UPSC
- Previous
- $43.81 bnAug 2026
- Highest
- $45.20 bnMay 2026
- Lowest
- $34.74 bnAug 2025
8 readings since May 2025.
Story
What India earns from selling goods abroad in a month.
What is happening now As of Sep 2026
India's goods exports were $44.40 billion in September 2026, up from $36.08 billion in September 2025, the Department of Commerce reports. It names electronic goods (up 70.44%), petroleum products (up 31.90%), chemicals, engineering goods (up 20.91%) and cotton textiles as the main drivers. Exports to the United States rose 47.99%.
From April to September 2026 goods exports were $259.89 billion, 18.51% more than a year earlier, and exports other than petroleum products rose 15.56%. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) reports double-digit growth for six months in a row, which it links to efforts to widen market access and find new markets. It expects recent trade agreements, including the India–United Kingdom deal, to support exports.
Why it matters
Exports bring in the foreign currency India needs to pay for oil, machinery and other imports. When exports grow, the farms and factories that sell abroad produce more and hire more workers, in fields from engineering and electronics to rice and textiles.
Exports also show how competitive Indian producers are and how strong demand is abroad. They respond to the rupee's exchange rate and to tariffs set by other countries. Strong exports narrow the trade deficit and support the rupee, and the government follows them when it negotiates trade agreements and sets export support under the Foreign Trade Policy.
What it is
Merchandise exports are the goods India sells abroad, from petroleum products and engineering goods to electronics, medicines and rice. The figure is their value in US dollars for the month.
The Department of Commerce publishes quick estimates around the 15th of the following month, together with imports, the trade balance and an estimate of services trade. The services figures come from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), and the latest month is an estimate until the RBI's data arrive.
Exports depend on demand abroad, the prices of oil and gold, the exchange rate and trade rules such as tariffs. Petroleum products and gems and jewellery swing with commodity prices, so the release also reports exports without them.
Read this number
- The publisher
- The Department of Commerce in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry publishes India's monthly trade in goods and services.
Terms on this page (1)
- RBI
- Reserve Bank of India
History
- 3 Jul 1991Export subsidies are abolished. Exporters are compensated through the exchange-rate adjustments of 1 and 3 July and a wider replenishment licence scheme.
- 1 Apr 2023The Foreign Trade Policy 2023 comes into force with no end date; it stays in operation until amended.
- 2024India's share of world merchandise exports reaches 1.8%, up from 1% in 2005.
- 2024-25Goods exports are $437.7 billion, close to the previous year; non-petroleum exports reach a record $374.3 billion.
Readings
| Period | Value | Status | Released |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2026 | $44.40 bn | Provisional | 15 Oct 2026 |
| Aug 2026 | $43.81 bn | Provisional | 15 Sep 2026 |
| Jul 2026 | $44.24 bn | Provisional | 13 Aug 2026 |
| May 2026 | $45.20 bn | Provisional | 15 Jun 2026 |
| Sep 2025 | $36.08 bn | Revised | 15 Oct 2026 |
| Aug 2025 | $34.74 bn | Revised | 15 Sep 2026 |
| Jul 2025 | $36.98 bn | Revised | 13 Aug 2026 |
| May 2025 | $38.30 bn | Revised | 15 Jun 2026 |
For UPSC
Know the Foreign Trade Policy 2023 and the law behind it, the Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992. Know the main export items, and how the services surplus and remittances offset the deficit in goods trade.