5-fold increase in exports to the UAE after CEPA; Indian Ministry Report

The Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry has revealed the results of a comprehensive study of the UAE-India trade since the implementation of the CEPA on May 1, 2022. 

The numbers shared revealed that India’s non-oil exports to the UAE grew remarkably by five times in the three months since the implementation of a bilateral Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) compared to India’s non-petroleum exports to the world during the same period.

The Indian Ministry highlighted that, “The UAE-India CEPA is already creating a significant positive impact on bilateral trade. Indian exports to the UAE, excluding petroleum products, grew from $5.17 billion during June-August last year to $5.92 billion during June-August 2022, which works out to a year-on-year increase of 14 percent.”

“India’s global non-petroleum exports during June-August 2022 grew by three percent annually. This implies that the growth rate of India’s non-petroleum exports to the UAE is almost five times as that of India’s non-petroleum exports to the world,” the analysis unveiled.

Indian exports to the UAE are predicted to raise further in the coming months with the growing use of the CEPA by exporters.

“A series of trade promotion events in the UAE during the current financial year are planned,” the study remarked.

The Ministry noted that even though the CEPA went into force on 1st May, the first month of its implementation was not included in the study because it was considered a transition period. Hence the analysis is for three months, from June to August.

During the same period, India’s imports from the UAE grew from $5.56 billion to $5.61 billion. The trade increase in both directions is significant “in the context of global macro-economic headwinds, including policy tightening in advanced economies, global growth slowdown and a reduction in international merchandise trade.”

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