India aims at 10 pc share in global merchandise exports by 2047: WTO report
India aims to significantly boost global merchandise exports by 2047. The nation is implementing various schemes to promote its export growth. India's trade policies are undergoing review by the World Trade Organisation. The government has also modified customs duties in its recent budget. These efforts align with the Viksit Bharat vision for sustained economic expansion.
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Context
According to a (WTO) report prepared for the eighth review of India's trade policies, India aims to increase its share of global merchandise exports from 1.8% in 2024 to 10% by 2047, aligning with the vision. The review highlights India's strategy of using duty exemption and remission schemes to boost exports, while also detailing India's stance on WTO reforms, emphasizing development-centric approaches and opposition to .
UPSC Perspectives
Economic
The article underscores India's ambitious export targets under the [Viksit Bharat] vision, aiming for a tenfold increase in its global merchandise export share by 2047. To achieve this, the government relies on various duty exemption, remission, and rebate schemes (such as - Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products). These schemes are crucial because they ensure that internal taxes are not exported, making Indian goods competitive globally. The reform of the basic customs duties structure in the 2025-26 Budget, which eliminated peak rates (100-150%) and reduced the number of applied rates to eight, signals a move towards trade liberalization and simplifying the tariff structure. For UPSC Mains (GS-3), this relates to the 'Effects of liberalization on the economy' and 'Changes in industrial policy'. Candidates should analyze whether these tariff simplifications and export promotion schemes are sufficient to overcome structural bottlenecks in Indian manufacturing, such as logistics costs and ease of doing business.
International Relations
India's participation in the 's Trade Policy Review Mechanism (TPRM) is a key aspect of global trade governance. The TPRM ensures transparency and peer review of member states' trade policies. Crucially, the article highlights India's persistent opposition to [Joint Statement Initiatives] (JSIs). JSIs are plurilateral negotiations (involving a subset of WTO members) on issues like e-commerce and investment facilitation. India argues that JSIs undermine the multilateral, consensus-based framework of the WTO established under the . India's stance is that WTO reforms must be "development-centred, consensus-based, and member-driven," advocating for the preservation of Special and Differential Treatment (S&DT) for developing nations. This is a critical GS-2 topic under 'Important International institutions, agencies and fora'. UPSC questions often ask candidates to evaluate India's role in the WTO, particularly its defense of the Global South's interests against the push by developed nations to introduce new issues via plurilateral routes.
Governance
The strategic alignment of India's trade policy with the overarching national goal of [Viksit Bharat] (Developed India by 2047) demonstrates a whole-of-government approach to economic statecraft. The reliance on duty remission schemes highlights a governance shift from direct subsidies (which are often WTO non-compliant) to reimbursing embedded taxes. Furthermore, the simplification of the customs duty structure reflects an effort to improve the ease of doing business by reducing classification disputes and administrative burdens at ports. However, as noted by the (GTRI) regarding food safety regimes before the , boosting exports requires not just tariff rationalization but also strengthening domestic Non-Tariff Measures (NTMs) like Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) standards. For GS-2 'Government policies and interventions', candidates should note that achieving the 10% export target requires robust institutional capacity to meet international quality standards and navigate complex compliance requirements in destination markets.