The Exports and Imports Data has come in and we are seeing export growth come down to just 3.5% over last year, while imports were down 15%. The trade balance was up to $10 billion after being at $9.2 bn in November.
Imports are still de-growing largely due to the restrictions in gold. Export growth, though, is slow. Remember this is only goods, not services (like IT Exports).
The reduction in export growth despite a weak rupee is interesting. Is it that India’s competitive advantage has been wiped off by other competitive economies seeing even more damage?