Healthy rise in exports in April so far: Goyal

The country's exports have shown a healthy increase during the first-three weeks of April so far despite the ongoing West Asia crisis, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Wednesday. He also said that free trade agreements finalised by India would give a huge boost to the domestic industry. ''There is an increase in exports during the first three weeks of April as compared to the same period of last April… Despite the war in West Asia, there is tremendous enthusiasm among domestic exporters, '' Goyal told reporters here. On exports to West Asia, he said the consignments are going through different routes because the Strait of Hormuz is still a challenge. When asked about the progress in negotiations for a trade pact with the US, the minister said, ''We had very good discussions, I think about a week ago. Our team is back, and we continue to engage.'' He added that the government has finalised a number of trade pacts with countries, including UAE, UK, EU, four European nation bloc EFTA (European Free Trade Association), Australia, Mauritius, and Oman. ''Another 12 are on the anvil,'' he said. India is negotiating a trade agreement with Israel, Gulf Cooperation Council, and Canada.

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