Tuesday , July 01, 2008 at 2145 hrs
Surging oil import bill has turned India's current account balance into deficit of $1.04 billion in the fourth quarter of 2007-08 against $4.25 billion surplus a year ago, despite growth in software services exports and rise in remittances from overseas Indians.
With this, India's current account deficit rose by 77% to touch $17.4 billion, constituting 1.5% of the GDP last fiscal against $9.8 billion or 1.1% of the GDP in 2006-07, data released by the RBI said on Monday.
Meanwhile, d riven by growing finance needs of the Indian Inc, the external debt of the country soared 30.4% to over $220 billion in the last fiscal.
"The external debt was placed at $221.2 billion at the end of March 2008, recording an increase of $51.5 billion, or 30.4%, over the end-March 2007 level," the RBI.
The increase, the RBI said, was mainly on account of massive external commercial borrowings, contributing 39.5% and short-term debt, accounting for 34.8% of the total external debt.
While there was significant growth in oil imports at 88.9% in the fourth quarter of last fiscal, non-oil imports recorded a growth of 30.6%.
The country's balance from services trade and net money transfer (invisibles) by overseas Indians rose to $22.8 billion in the fourth quarter of 2007-08 against $17.1 billion a year ago, RBI said.
"Steady expansion in invisibles surplus reflected mainly the growth in exports of software services and travel receipts and inward remittances from overseas Indians for family maintenance," RBI said.
—PTI |
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