NEW DELHI (Reuters) -India’s merchandise trade deficit widened sharply in July, pushed by a surge in imports, even as merchandise exports rose ahead of President Donald Trump’s tariff announcements on trading partners including India, government data released on Thursday showed.
In April-July, shipments to the U.S. rose to $33.53 billion from $27.57 billion a year ago. Trump last week imposed an additional 25% tariff on Indian goods due to Delhi’s continued purchase of Russian oil, bringing the total levies on Indian exports to the U.S. to 50% – among the highest of any U.S. trading partner. The trade deficit stood at $27.35 billion in July, higher than economists’ expectations of $20.35 billion, and against $18.78 billion in the previous month. Goods exports rose to $37.24 billion in July, up from $35.14 billion in June, while imports rose to $64.59 billion, up from $53.92 billion in the previous month, the data showed.
(Reporting by Manoj Kumar and Nikunj Ohri; Editing by Sonia Cheema)
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