The ministry also suggested focusing on organizing global fairs and exhibitions
The commerce ministry asked exporters to focus on potential key sectors such as food, electronics and engineering and 12 major markets to boost exports, an official said.
These issues among others were discussed during a meeting called by the ministry with the industry and exporters.
The meeting was chaired by commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal.
The six sectors which hold huge potential to increase the country’s exports include food, textiles, engineering, electricals and electronics, medical devices, pharma and auto components.
The main global destinations where exports could be promoted further include the US, UK, Brazil, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Sweden, Taiwan, Korea, Japan and Russia.
An industry representative, who participated in the meeting, said that emphasis was given on both trade and investments.
Increasing investments will help in promoting trade through integration with global value chains.
The meeting assumed significance as the country’s merchandise exports have been contracting for the last four months due to demand slowdown in the global markets.
An exporter said that the export figures for June are also looking “disappointing” due to the global economic uncertainties.
“Trade and investments need to be promoted parallelly,” the exporter added.
Exports declined for the fourth consecutive month by 10.3 per cent year-on-year to USD 34.98 billion in May, while the trade deficit widened to a five-month high of USD 22.12 billion, according to the ministry data.
Cumulatively, exports during April-May this fiscal contracted by 11.41 per cent to USD 69.72 billion, while imports declined 10.24 per cent to USD 107 billion.
Demand slowdown in major markets, high inflation in developed economies and the Russia-Ukraine war are impacting the country’s exports.
Representatives from different export promotion councils from sectors such as apparel and medical devices participated in the meeting besides Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) and industry associations.
