“Stripping out petroleum, gold, and diamonds, India’s imports actually rose by 12%, from $36.8 billion to $41.2 billion. This corroborates with GST collection through imports. India’s net customs revenue from IGST rose by 72.9%, increasing from ₹24,510 crore in May 2024 to ₹42,370 crore in May 2025. Since petroleum products are outside the GST system, this sharp rise in IGST collections broadly reflects the overall increase in imports,” Srivastava added.
Two categories with high import growth stood out: electronics (up 27.5% to $9.1 billion) and machinery and computers (up 22% to $5 billion). GTRI attributes part of this increase to China, as India’s combined imports from China and Hong Kong surged by 22.4%, from $9.8 billion to $12 billion.
Meanwhile, India’s exports to the United States jumped 17.3% to $8.8 billion, driven in part by higher smartphone shipments.
India’s merchandise exports dipped marginally to $38.73 billion during May 2025 as compared to $39.59 billion in May last year. The decline, amid challenging global trade conditions, was cushioned by a 54.1% increase in electronic goods exports, $4.57 billion in May 2025 as compared to $2.97 billion in May 2024, monthly trade data released by the Commerce Ministry shows.