US tariffs have had little impact on India, with China providing a solution

India's exports to China have increased every month in the first seven months of this fiscal year. October saw the highest increase of 42%. This helped the country mitigate the impact of heavy tariffs imposed by the United States. 

Goods shipped to China between April and October increased 24.7% compared to last year, reaching $10.03 billion. Petroleum products, telecom equipment, and marine goods performed well. However, overall, India's merchandise exports grew only marginally, at 0.63%.

An official said this is the strongest period for India-China trade in recent years, especially at a time when global demand is weak and many major countries are seeing their exports decline. 

China remains India's largest supplier of goods, selling goods worth $73.99 billion to India between April and October. India's trade deficit with China during this period stood at $64 billion.

High demand for petroleum products

According to the data, exports to China grew 11% in April, 28% in July, and 33% in September. China was India's fourth-largest export destination during April-October. 

The strong exports to China in October were a significant contrast to India's overall export performance. India's total exports fell 11.8% to $34.38 billion that month due to the 50% tariff imposed by the United States on August 27th.

India's trade deficit widened to a record $41.68 billion due to higher gold imports. Separate data for October is not available, but petroleum product exports to China more than doubled to $1.48 billion in April-September, indicating strong demand for industrial fuels in China.

Record exports in this sector

Telecom equipment was another fast-growing category. Its exports more than tripled to $778.23 million, from $207.26 million previously. 

The official said that India's exports to China increasing for seven consecutive months indicates strong trade relations between the two countries. 

He added that the outlook for the rest of FY26 looks positive. Seafood exports also increased to $659.27 million from $548.36 million.