Fall in non-oil imports expected to shrink the current account deficit: Nomura

30 May 2012 Evaluate

A substantial fall in the non-oil imports of India will lead to a decline in current account deficit, stated a report by financial services firm - Nomura. This is expected due to the depreciation of the rupee which will make imports costlier, slumping commodity prices and subdued investment inflows.

India’s current account deficit stood at an uncomfortable 4% of GDP. This was mainly due to the high prices of global crude oil whose imports totaled to $150 billion and diminishing exports. Also the non oil imports like gold, capital goods, coal, fertilisers and other metals contributed to the CAD significantly. Infact imports of gold stood at $55 billion. The government in an attempt to discourage its imports of gold increased the import duty on it. As a result gold import is set to fall further with rising prices and taxes.

In FY12 the non oil imports grew by 24% and by 31% in FY11. However now as per Nomura, it is expected that this number will come down to a single digit. Infact the report cited that the non-oil commodity price growth will remain flat in FY13. Further the rising rupee will make imports costlier leading to greater focus on domestic production. A subdued investment demand is further expected to reduce the imports of non oil commodities.

© 2026 The Alchemists Ark Pvt. Ltd. All rights reserved. MoneyWorks4Me ® is a registered trademark of The Alchemists Ark Pvt. Ltd.

×