Trade Gap Widens As India’s Oil Import Bill Shoots High

India’s trade deficit widens the most in last three months in April!

Petroleum and crude oil imports continued to be the largest contributor to India’s import bill.

• Oil imports surged 41.5% in value terms as Brent crude rallied
• Brent crude has surged nearly 65 percent from its 12-month low
• Widening trade gap to put pressure on current account deficit
India’s trade deficit widened the most in three months in April as rising crude prices weighed on the world’s third-biggest oil consumer.
The trade deficit — gap between exports and imports — was at $13.7 billion in April.
India’s trade deficit will widen to a four-year high of 6.4 percent of the gross domestic product in the year through March, rising from 6 percent last year, due to rise in oil and gold shipments, according to India Ratings and Research, the local unit of Fitch.
NIFTY50 return V/S Crude Price:

Key points from April trade data:
• Imports rose 4.6% to $39.6 billion
• Oil imports surged 41.5% to $10.4 billion
• Exports climbed 5.2% to $25.9 billion
What Costly Oil Mean for India
Soaring crude prices are likely to exert pressure on the government to cut excise duties on oil, which will reduce public expenditure. Higher input costs will either directly lower the gross value add by firms or will lower demand if passed on to consumers.