DGFT announces steps to shield exporters from Gulf crisis

New Delhi: The government has introduced a series of measures to support exporters affected by the ongoing Gulf conflict, a key market for Indian goods worth about $57 billion in exports in 2024-25, a senior official said on

Thursday.

At an inter-ministerial briefing, Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) Lav Aggarwal said the commerce ministry is working with insurers and banks to address rising war risk insurance premiums and trade finance challenges.

India’s bilateral trade with the Gulf region stood at $178 billion in 2024-25, including $56.87 billion in exports and $121.67 billion in imports.

Key sectors under stress include petroleum products, chemicals, engineering goods, rice, phar-maceuticals, and gems and jewellery.

Aggarwal noted that higher freight costs, vessel rerouting and war-risk surcharges have disrupted shipments, especially for perishable goods like fruits and vegetables. Payment channels and credit cycles, particularly in the agri sector, are also facing strain.

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) remains a critical market and sourcing hub for gems and jewellery. However, gold jewellery exports and sourcing of gold bars and rough diamonds have been impacted.

LPG supply disruptions have also affected manufacturing clusters involved in metal processing and gemstone polishing.

Engineering exporters are grappling with higher logistics costs and restricted port access, while MSMEs face shortages of raw materials, including key pharmaceutical inputs.

Longer shipping routes to the US and Europe have further increased transit time and costs.

To mitigate the impact, the government set up an inter-ministerial group on March 2 to assess and co-ordinate the response.

The group has held 20 meetings so far, with a dedicated sub-group focusing on facilitating movement of perishable cargo.

“The group continues to monitor the evolving situation and ensure coordinated action to support trade,” Aggarwal said. Agencies