India's shipments to US decline in February due to high tariffs imposed by US

The Commerce Ministry in its latest data, has indicated that India's merchandise exports to the United States (US) declined 12.88% year-on-year to $6.88 billion in February 2026 impacted by high tariffs imposed by the US.

Exports to the US also contracted in September, October, December last year and January this year, before rebounding 22.61% in November.

On the other hand, imports from the US grew 36.53% to $4.48 billion in February. On a cumulative basis, the country's exports to the US rose 3.84% to $79.29 billion during the April-February period of this fiscal year, while imports rose 15.65% to $48.4 billion.

According to the data, the country's exports to China rose 32.37% to $1.67 billion, while imports surged 30.49% to $11.95 billion. During the 11-month period of FY26, the country's exports to China increased 37.66% to $17.54 billion, while imports rose 15.21% to $119.55 billion. India’s trade deficit with China has reached $102.01 billion during the April-February period of this fiscal.

It further said India's exports to Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Nepal, France, Brazil, Spain, Belgium, Malaysia and Vietnam saw positive growth during the month under review. However, exports to the UK, the Netherlands, the UK, Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh, Singapore, Australia, and South Africa registered negative growth.

On the imports front, shipments in February declined from the UAE, Russia, Germany, Thailand and Qatar. However, imports rose from Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Switzerland, Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea and Indonesia.

In the previous month, the textile and apparel exports to the US declined 3.68% and 3.84% respectively. However, to mitigate the impact of fall in exports to the US, the Indian exports diversified to China, Europe, which are now aiming to be major market for Indian products.