Foreign trade of India

Foreign trade in India includes all imports and exports to and from India. At the level of Central Government it is administered by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry

History There are records throughout history of India's trade with foreign countries. Around 100 BC The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea is a document written by an anonymous sailor from Alexandria about 100 BC describing trade between countries, including India. Among other things it says that at the time India exported cotton, ivory, mallow cloth, muslin, precious and semi-precious gems, silk, spices, and curatives like black pepper, nard etc.

The same document says that India was an importer of wines from Italy, Arabia, and Laodicea, copper, tin, lead, coral, topaz, storax, sweet clover, flint, glass, realgar, antimony, gold and silver coins, and performers for kings.

Around 1500 In 1498 Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama landed in Calicut as the first European to ever sail to India. The tremendous profit made during this trip made the Portuguese eager for more trade with India and attracted other European navigators and tradesmen.

1991 economic reform Prior to the 1991 economic liberalisation,India was a closed economy due to the average tariffs exceeding 200 percent and the extensive quantitative restrictions on imports. Foreign investment was strictly restricted to only allow Indian ownership of businesses. Since the liberalisation, India's economy has improved mainly due to increased foreign trade.

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