Agriculture: A steep surge in global commodity prices, regular monsoons, and an extended winter is being attributed to the 9.8 percent rise in export figures for farm produce in India. In comparison, overall exports fell by 15.5 percent due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the Commerce Ministry, India’s overall exports between April and December 2020 stood at USD 201.3 billion—a decline of USD 36.97 billion from the previous year. Meanwhile, exports of farm commodities rose to USD 28.91 billion in the same period (up from USD 26.34 billion in 2019), imports contracted by 5.5 percent, and agricultural trade surplus increased to USD 13.07 billion in April-December 2020 (up from USD 9.57 billion in April-December 2019).
The UNFAO’s Food Price Index (FPI) for January 2021 is at 113.3 points; this is the highest since the 116.4 points recorded in July 2014.
As many countries opened up their economies after May 2020, demand normalised and supply chains were restored. This, in turn, made the export of farm produce from India, such as sugar, cotton, oilseeds, non-basmati rice, wheat, and maize, competitive in the world market.