PM Modi To Meet Exporters On Boosting Global Competitiveness

07 Nov 2025 CW Team

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet exporters from key labour-intensive sectors on Monday to discuss strategies aimed at enhancing India’s global trade competitiveness, according to industry representatives.

The meeting will include participants from sectors such as apparel, leather, gems and jewellery, handicrafts, engineering, and seafood, along with heads of their respective export promotion councils.

The consultation assumes importance as these labour-driven industries continue to face headwinds from a 50 per cent tariff imposed by the United States on several Indian goods, except for a few exempted categories. Exporters have stressed that tariffs and import duties play a decisive role in determining global competitiveness.

India and the United States are currently in discussions to finalise a bilateral trade agreement, which exporters hope will ease trade restrictions and create a more balanced framework for market access.

At present, India’s share in global trade stands at about 2 per cent — including 1.6 per cent in merchandise exports and 3.3 per cent in services exports — underscoring the need for stronger policy support to increase market penetration worldwide.

In September, India’s exports rose by 6.74 per cent to USD 36.38 billion, while imports surged by 16.6 per cent, widening the trade deficit to USD 31.15 billion.

For the April–September period, exports grew by 3.02 per cent to USD 220.12 billion, despite global challenges, whereas imports increased by 4.53 per cent to USD 375.11 billion, resulting in a trade deficit of USD 154.99 billion.

The meeting is expected to focus on improving export incentives, addressing supply-chain constraints, and formulating a long-term competitiveness roadmap for India’s labour-intensive manufacturing and services sectors.

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