India
Economic and trade overview
Key figures
Economy 2011 Trade 2011 (USD billion)
GDP (USD) 1,898 bn Goods Exports 299
GDP per capita (USD) 1,528 Imports 416
GDP volume growth (year-on-year) + 6.5% Net – 116
Population 1,241.49m Services Exports 137
MMR (year average) 8.80% Imports 125
Exchange rate INR / USD (year average) 46.670 Net + 13
BoP (goods, services & income) as % of GDP – 6.4% Source: IFS, IMF, January 2013International/regional memberships
South Asian Association for Regional
Cooperation (SAARC):
since 8 December 1985.
International Monetary Fund (IMF):
since 27 December 1945.
World Trade Organization (WTO):
since 1 January 1995.
Government trade policy
India has pursued trade liberalisation in recent
years, though significant trade restrictions and
controls remain. It has also actively pursued
an export support programme over the past
several years with a target to increase its
share of global trade to 5 percent by 2020.
India has bilateral trade agreements with
several countries/trading blocs, including
Singapore, Chile, Afghanistan, Bhutan,
South Korea, Nepal, Sri Lanka, SAFTA (the
South Asian Free Trade Area), ASEAN (the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations) and
Mercosur (Mercado Común del Sur / the
Southern Cone Common Market).
National export credit insurance provider:
Export Credit Guarantee Corporation of India
(ECGC — http://www.ecgc.in).
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI —
http://www.rbi.org.in) operates India’s state-
supported, short-term export credit
programme.
The Export-Import Bank of India (EXIM Bank
— http://www.eximbankindia.com) operates India’s
state-supported, long-term export credit
programme.
India maintains 158 Special Economic Zones
(http://sezindia.nic.in), in which export-
promoting companies can be foreign owned.
Exporters based in these zones benefit from
tax concessions for up to 15 years.Currency and exchange controls
Official currency: Indian rupee (INR).
Exchange rate arrangement: floating.
India does impose some foreign exchange
controls, which are administered by the RBI.
Residents and non-residents can only enter
into forward foreign exchange contracts
using Authorised Dealers (ADs), which
are banks licensed to deal in the foreign
exchange market. Residents are limited to
dealing in forward contracts up to a limit set
as the higher of either the company’s most
recent annual turnover or its three-year
average turnover.
Relevant documentation must support any
foreign exchange payment for imports with a
value over USD 200,000 or the equivalent in
foreign currency.
All export proceeds must be repatriated
within 12 months of the shipment of goods,
unless an exporter has been granted
prior permission from the RBI. All foreign
exchange receipts may be kept by an export-