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Informist, Monday, Mar. 16, 2026

 

--Trade secy: March exports impacted by West Asia conflict 

--Trade secy: Aim to announce more steps this week to support exporters 

--Trade secy: March likely to be challenging in terms of trade

 

NEW DELHI – The government is planning to roll out measures to support exporters this week in the wake of the West Asia conflict, Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said Monday. The ongoing geopolitical tensions in West Asia, especially around the Strait of Hormuz, pose risks for Indian exporters, affecting shipping schedules, costs, a hike in insurance premiums, and bottlenecks to supply chains.

 

India faces supply constraints after Israel and the US launched joint military strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, prompting Tehran to hit back at the Jewish state and at US military installations around the Persian Gulf. Iran also shut the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway that connects the Gulf to the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean, resulting in a sharp rise in crude oil and natural gas prices. A fifth of global crude oil supply flows through the Strait of Hormuz.

 

Agrawal Monday also said March is likely to be a challenging month in terms of trade, marred by the ongoing US-Israel war on Iran, which has hit cargo movement through the Strait of Hormuz. Imports this month are already being impacted because of the conflict in West Asia, the secretary said.

 

The Centre had, last week, eased norms for handling export cargoes returning to Indian ports due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and maritime disruptions. The returning vessels can only park at the same port of departure, provided they did not cross India's territorial waters and had not called any foreign ports, the customs department had said in a notification. The new norms are valid for 15 days starting Mar. 8.

 

The containers of such returning vessels can be offloaded without filing a bill of entry and exporters can also offload those cargoes into the domestic market through a "back-to-town facility" after customs officials cancel shipping bills and export orders. However, the government has not eased norms for shipments that crossed Indian territorial waters, but returned to Indian ports after calling any foreign port without discharging the container.

 

Global Trade Research Initiative Founder Ajay Srivastava had said in a report on Mar. 5 that if disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz continue beyond a week, which they have now, the effects could quickly spread from energy markets to fertiliser supplies, manufacturing inputs, construction materials, and export industries such as diamonds.

 

Besides crude oil, natural gas supplies, and liquefied petroleum gas, the disruption also poses risks to India's farm sector through a shortage in fertiliser supplies, Srivastava had said. Other imports that could be affected include various industrial raw materials, like polyethene, construction materials like limestone, critical minerals, and metals, including direct reduced iron and copper wire, and diamonds, he had added. 

 

India's merchandise exports during the first eleven months of 2025-26 (Apr-Mar) rose 1.84% on year to $402.93 billion from $395.66 billion in the same period of FY25. India imported goods worth $713.53 billion in Apr-Feb, 8.53% higher from $657.46 billion in the same period last year. The trade deficit during Apr-Feb was $310.60 billion, higher than $261.80 billion a year ago. End

 

US$1 = INR 92.42

 

Reported by Krity Ambey and Priyasmita Dutta

Edited by Akul Nishant Akhoury

 

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