MSME share in exports was 43% in 2011-12

The MSME sector contributes around 9% of India's GDP and accounts for around 45% of manufacturing output

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The share of exports by micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) in India's total exports has been provisionally estimated at 43 per cent in 2011-12, according to the ministry of MSME. Besides, the ministry estimates total fixed assets of MSMEs in India at Rs 689,000 crore and the number of people employed by the sector at around 80 million.

Minister of State (Independent Charge) for MSMEs K H Muniyappa said in the Rajya Sabha recently that "under a revised method of estimation, the share of MSME product exports in total exports of India has been provisionally estimated at 43 per cent in 2011-12".

According to Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics (DGCI&S) data, in the last three years, MSME exports increased by almost 60 per cent - from $82,494 million in 2009-10 to $131,483 million in 2011-12.

The main markets for the 20 most-exported MSME product groups, which accounted for more than 90 per cent of MSME exports from 2009 to 2012, include the USA, European Union (EU), UAE, Turkey, Singapore, Hong Kong, Israel and Saudi Arabia. (TOP-10 STATES BY MSME FIXED ASSETS)

The product groups include pearls, precious stones and metals; electrical and electronic equipment; textiles, apparel and accessories; pharmaceutical products; machinery and mechanical appliances; items made of iron or steel; organic chemicals; vehicles other than railways and tramways; plastics, rubber and articles made from them; footwear, leather and leather products; travel goods; tools, implements and cutlery; tanning and dyeing extracts, tannins, derivatives and pigments; essential oils, perfumes, cosmetics and toiletries; stone, plaster, cement, asbestos and mica; carpets and other textile floor coverings; furniture, lighting, signs and prefabricated buildings.

"The MSME sector of India has been repeatedly mentioned as the growth engine of the Indian economy, but the depth of its achievements is often not fully appreciated," Muniyappa said on another recent occasion.

The MSME sector, with 36 million enterprises having fixed assets of Rs 689,000 crore and 80.5 million employees, contributes around nine per cent of India's GDP and accounts for around 45 per cent of manufacturing output. It has been continuously growing at a rate far above the large sector.