India posts current account surplus of $19.8 bn as trade deficit narrows

Surplus in April-June 2020 (Q1Fy21) comes on top of a surplus of $0.6 billion (0.1 per cent of GDP) in the preceding quarter (Q4 Fy20), says RBI.

With sharp contraction in trade deficit, India’s current account balance recorded a surplus of $19.8 billion (3.9 per cent of gross domestic product, or GDP) in the first quarter (Q1) of 2020-21 (FY21). This contrasts with deficit of $15 billion (2.1 per cent of GDP) in April-June 2019 (Q1FY20).

The surplus in April-June 2020 (Q1FY21) comes on top of a surplus of $0.6 billion (0.1 per cent of GDP) in the preceding quarter (Q4FY20), said the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) statement. 

The surplus was due to sharp contraction in trade deficit to $10 billion, as the country’s merchandise imports declined sharply