India’s exports to China climb for 7 straight months in FY26, help New Delhi soften US tariff blow

India’s exports of goods to China have increased every month in the first seven months of this financial year, peaking at a 42% increase in October and helping New Delhi partially soften the impact of higher US tariffs.

Shipments to the northern neighbor increased by 24.7% to $10.03 billion in the April-October period compared to the previous year. Petroleum products, telecom instruments and marine products led the strong performance. However, total goods exports increased marginally by 0.63% during this period.

“This is one of the most resilient phases in bilateral trade in recent years, especially at a time when global demand remains uncertain and many major economies are facing contraction in their export sectors,” an official said.

China remained India’s top import destination, supplying goods worth $73.99 billion in the April-October period. New Delhi’s trade deficit with Beijing stood at $64 billion during this period.

Demand for Petroleum Products

Data showed that exports to China started with an 11% year-on-year increase in April, accelerating to 28% in July and 33% in September. China became India’s fourth largest export destination in the April-October period. Strong shipments to China in October are an outlier compared to India’s overall export performance.

During the month, total exports decreased by 11.8% to 34.38 billion dollars, due to the effect of the 50% customs duty imposed by the USA as of August 27.

Due to increased gold imports, India’s trade deficit rose to a record $41.68 billion.

Although disaggregated data for October is not available, oil product exports to Beijing more than doubled to $1.48 billion from April to September, highlighting strong industrial fuel demand in China.

Telecommunications tools also emerged as another high-growth category; Exports increased threefold from 207.26 million dollars in the previous year to 778.23 million dollars.

“The steady monthly increase in India’s exports to China during April-October indicates strengthening of the bilateral trade route,” the official said, adding that “the outlook for the remainder of FY26 remains positive.”

Seafood exports to China increased from 548.36 million dollars to 659.27 million dollars.