Import of sensitive items up nearly 27 per cent in April-September

Import of sensitive items into the country rose 26.8 per cent to Rs20,560.2 crore for the April-September 08 period, from Rs16,216.6 crore in the corresponding period of last year.

Gross import of all commodities during this period for the current year was Rs66,1208 crore compared to Rs456407 crore during the same period last year. Iimport of sensitive constituted 3.6 per cent and 3.1 per cent of the gross imports during last year and current year, respectively.

While imports of milk and milk products and food grains have declined during the period, imports of items such as edible oil, automobiles, fruits and vegetables (including nuts), cotton and silk, products of SSI, rubber, spices, alcoholic beverages, marble and granite and tea and coffee have risen during the period under review.

Import of crude edible oil has declined by 6.5 per cent and that of refined oil by 79.2 per cent over the same period last year, mainly due to a significant increase in import of palmolein. In absolute figures, the import of edible oils has risen from Rs6,009.23 crore last year to Rs6,182.89 crore for the corresponding period this year.

Import of sensitive items from Indonesia, China PRP, Korea RP, Myanmar, Japan, Germany, the United States, Malaysia, Cote D' Ivoire, Thailand, Czech Republic, Italy, Benin, Australia, Egypt, Sweden, Guinea, the United Kingdom etc have moved upward while those from Argentina, Canada and Brazil etc have declined.