Exports decline in March by 33.3 pct

New Delhi: India's exports declined by 33.3 per cent in March over the year-ago period, posting contraction for the sixth month in a row under the impact of a slowdown in major global markets.

Exports dropped to USD 11.51 billion in March last fiscal, from USD 17.25 billion in the same month of the previous financial year, while imports dipped 34 per cent to USD 15.56 billion, leaving a monthly trade deficit of USD 4.05 billion, according to official figures released on Friday.

Exports contracted 12.1 per cent to USD 12.8 billion in October 2008, showing a negative trend for the first time in five years.

For April-March 2008-09, the country's cumulative exports grew by 3.4 per cent to USD 168.70 billion. Growth for the first half of the fiscal was 30.9 per cent.

Imports in April-March 2008-09 went up by 14.3 per cent to USD 287.75 billion. The trade deficit for the period has mounted to USD 119.05 billion.

With the US and several European countries slipping into full-blown recession, Indian exporters have run into difficult times, especially since October.