India wants to loosen import reliance on China, but it’s ‘becoming worse’
- China’s exports to India increased by 31 per cent to US$89.6 billion in the first nine months of this year, compared to the same period in 2021
- India is attempting strategic decoupling from China, while trying to boost domestic manufacturing and capitalise on global investors’ efforts to diversify
India’s trade with China is thriving despite efforts to reduce reliance on its neighbour and bolster its own manufacturing base.
China’s exports to India increased by 31 per cent to US$89.6 billion in the first nine months of this year, compared to the same period in 2021, according to data from China’s General Administration of Customs.
Indian exports to China – its largest trading partner, according to Beijing – declined by 36.4 per cent in the same period, falling to US$13.9 billion between January and September.
Bilateral trade, meanwhile, is on track to exceed the previous high of US$125.6 billion last year, and was valued at US$103.6 billion in the first nine months.
“India’s exports to China are mainly raw materials, which are highly substitutable in the international market,” said Lin Minwang, deputy director of the Centre for South Asian Studies at Fudan University.
“On the contrary, China mainly exports manufactured products to India, and the advantages of Chinese products have been strengthened under the Covid-19 pandemic.”
