Engineering exports to miss $60 bn target in FY13

India is unlikely to meet even the lowered engineering exports target of $60 billion for the current fiscal due to slowdown in the key western markets such as the US and Europe.

"Overall it is deficient but more than 90% of the last year's achievement will be done. We are trying about thinking in terms of 55 to 57 billion (in 2012-13)," Engineering Export Promotion Council Executive Director B Sarkar told PTI here.

The Council has set a target of $72 billion at the start of the current financial year but later revised it downwards to $60 billion keeping in view the decline in demand from the traditional markets.

"We are very apprehensive about the present trend going now because you know our main destinations have been to USA and European Union. Both these places are suffering. So our exports are also suffering," Sarkar said.

The US and Europe together account for over 60% of India's total engineering exports.
Sarkar said EEPC in the declining trend in exports the EEPC was "fingers crossed" that the exports will increase as "there is a growth in the last two months and there will be people who will be registering exports in the month of March.

"For the last two months there has been some increase. Shortfall was around 11% earlier, the shortfall has now come down to six%," he added.

During April-November 2012, engineering exports dropped 7.5% to $36 billion compared to the same period last year.

The decline in engineering exports is in sync with the country's overall exports that fell by 5.95% year on year to $189.2 billion in the first eight months of the current fiscal.

Engineering exports include transport equipment, capital goods, other machinery/equipment and light engineering products like castings, forgings and fasteners.

During 2011-12, engineering exports grew 17% to $58.2 billion, compared to $49.7 billion in the previous fiscal.