Exercises · Q12
Q.Discuss the causes of a trade deficit in a country like India and suggest measures to correct it.
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Start your 14-day free trial to unlock the full solution →A trade deficit occurs when the value of a country's visible imports () exceeds the value of its visible exports (), i.e., .
Major causes of India's trade deficit:
- Heavy crude oil dependence — India imports the bulk of the crude petroleum it consumes, and oil price fluctuations directly widen or narrow the deficit.
- Large gold imports — driven by strong domestic investment and jewellery demand, gold is one of India's biggest non-oil import items.
- Rising imports of electronics and capital goods — as domestic demand for technology and machinery grows faster than domestic production capacity.
- Relatively narrower export diversification compared to import needs, despite recent gains in engineering goods, pharmaceuticals and services.
- Global demand fluctuations — a slowdown in partner-country economies can reduce India's export earnings while import needs stay largely unchanged.
Measures to correct a trade deficit:
- Boost export competitiveness through the Foreign Trade Policy's incentives, SEZs, and export promotion councils.
- Diversify the export basket and markets to reduce reliance on a few commodities or partners.
- Encourage domestic manufacturing (import substitution in select sectors) to reduce dependence on imported electronics, machinery, and inputs. …
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