The bilateral trade between India and the UAE grew 21.35 per cent to USD 80.51 billion during the April-January period this fiscal year, according to the commerce ministry data.
While India’s exports to the UAE rose 6.82 per cent to USD 30 billion during the first 10 months of this fiscal year, imports during this period rose 35.58 per cent to USD 50.51 billion, the data showed.
The ministry said the trade is registering healthy growth after implementation of a free trade agreement (FTA) between the two countries in May 2022.
The India-United Arab Emirates (UAE) Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) is completing three years of its signing on Tuesday.
“In terms of utilisation of CEPA, preferential duties are concerned, since coming into force, nearly 2,40,000 certificates of origin have been issued against which total export of USD 19.87 billion have been made to the UAE,” it said in a statement.
It also said the agreement has been successful in realising its potential of diversification of trade basket as non-oil trade touched USD 57.8 billion in 2023-24 accounting for more than half of the total trade.
This is attuned to the target of taking bilateral non-oil trade to USD 100 billion level by 2030.
At the sectoral level, besides refined crude oil products and gems and jewellery products, electrical machinery and equipment, light and medium high technology goods like boilers, generators and reactors and chemicals have been major achievers.
“Besides, at the product level, smartphones have emerged as a major item of export with shipments valued USD 2.57 billion bound for the UAE during 2023-24,” the ministry said.