India#39;s merchandise imports to cross $700 billion in FY23 on higher crude, coal shipments: GTRI

India#39;s merchandise imports to cross $700 billion in FY23 on higher crude, coal shipments: GTRI

India's merchandise imports are estimated to grow by about 16 per cent to USD 710 billion in this fiscal due to a jump in inbound shipments of crude oil, coal, diamonds, chemicals and electronics, a report by economic think tank GTRI said on Wednesday.

The Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) also said that the Indian economy will be moderately impacted by weak global demand and recession in large economies.

Six product categories - petroleum, crude oil; coal, coke; diamond, precious metals; chemicals, pharma, rubber, plastics; electronics; and machinery - account for 82 per cent of India's total merchandise imports.

"India's merchandise imports for the fiscal year ending March 2023 are estimated to touch USD 710 billion, up from USD 613 billion in FY'2022, an increase of over 15.8 per cent over last year," GTRI co-founder Ajay Srivastava said.

It said that the estimated value of petroleum imports is USD 210 billion and this includes crude oil, LNG and LPG.

"Crude imports grew by 53 per cent over the last fiscal. India bought crude from diversified countries. The top suppliers are Iraq (USD 36 billion), Saudi Arabia (USD 31 billion), Russia (USD 21 billion), UAE (USD 7 billion) USA (USD 11.9 billion). Imports from