India’s Current Account Surplus Jumps To Record High In April-June

Wednesday,   30-Sep-2020   03:09 PM (IST)

India posted a record current account surplus in April-June because of a sharp contraction in the trade deficit, the Reserve Bank of India said today. The current account surplus rose to $19.8 billion, or 3.9% of gross domestic product, in the first quarter of this fiscal year. India’s current account had moved into surplus of $0.6 billion, or 0.1% of GDP, in January-March. The country had posted a current account deficit of $15 billion, or 2.1% of GDP, in April-June last year. “The surplus in the current account in Q1 of 2020-21 was on account of a sharp contraction in the trade deficit to US$ 10.0 billion due to steeper decline in merchandise imports relative to exports on a year-on-year basis,” the central bank said. Balance of payments - reflected in net addition or reduction to India’s foreign exchange reserves - was $19.8 billion in April to June against an accretion of $14 billion in the year ago period, the RBI said.