The share of agriculture and allied products has declined, whereas, shares of petroleum and crude products and other commodities have increased.
The shares of ore minerals and manufactured goods have largely remained constant over the years.
The decline in traditional items is largely due to the tough international competition. Amongst the agricultural products, there is a decline in the export of traditional items, such as coffee, cashew, etc., though an increase has been registered in floricultural products, fresh fruits, marine products and sugar, etc.
Engineering goods have shown a significant growth in the export. China and othe East Asian countries are our major competitors. Gems and jewellery contributes a larger share of India’s foreign trade.
India faced serious food shortage during 1950s and 1960s. The major item of import at that time was foodgrain, capital goods, machinery and equipment. The balance of payment was adverse as imports were more than export in spite of all the efforts of import substitution. After 1970s, foodgrain import was discontinued due to the success of Green revolution but the energy crisis of 1973 pushed the prices of petroleum, and import budget was also pushed up.
Foodgrain import was replaced by fertilisers and petroleum. Machine and equipment, special steel, edible oil and chemicals largely make the import basket. Examine the changing pattern of imports in Table 8.4 and try to comprehend the shifts.
The equipment manufacturers of metals and machine tools were the main items of capital goods. Import of food and allied products declined with a fall in imports of edible oils. Other major items of India’s import include pearls and semi-precious stones, gold and silver, metalliferrous ores and metal scrap, non-ferrous metals, electronic goods, etc.