India’s export diversification strategy gained momentum in FY26, with ships, boats, telecom instruments, pulses, marine products, graphite and explosives emerging as key growth drivers as exporters entered new markets and added fresh product-country combinations, according to an ET report.According to an analysis by the commerce department, India expanded its export footprint through 1,821 new principal commodity product and country combinations during the last financial year, generating additional exports worth $202.2 million.“The trend highlights a gradual shift from traditional commodity-led expansion toward broader participation across high-value manufacturing, engineering, agri-processing and technology-intensive sectors,” ET quoted an official as saying.The development comes as India recorded merchandise exports of $441.8 billion in 2025-26, up 0.9 per cent from the previous financial year.Among products, ships, boats and floating structures emerged as the largest contributors, generating $57 million in additional exports across 19 new markets. Telecom instruments expanded into 20 new markets and generated exports worth $5.8 million, while nuclear reactors, industrial boilers and related parts added $14.3 million from 13 new markets.India also widened the footprint of precious metal exports, adding 17 new countries for gold and jewellery shipments and 19 new destinations for silver exports.The analysis showed that handloom products recorded the highest number of newly added markets at 29, followed by other oil seeds at 24.Agriculture and food products also witnessed broad-based diversification, with products such as fresh fruits and non-basmati rice finding stronger demand across new destinations.Emerging sectors including aircraft and spacecraft parts, along with consumer electronics, also registered growing acceptance in overseas markets.The report showed that export growth expanded across regions including Asia, Africa and Latin America, although North America remained India’s largest export destination with shipments worth $97.7 billion, accounting for 22.1 per cent of total exports.The strongest growth momentum came from Northeast Asia, where exports increased 21.6 per cent to $41.6 billion, raising the region’s share to 9.4 per cent of India’s total exports.“Seven out of the eight countries in the region recorded positive growth, highlighting rising demand for Indian electronics, engineering goods, chemicals and industrial products across advanced Asian manufacturing economies,” the official added.Exports to Latin America also increased 7.8 per cent to $16.4 billion during the fiscal year, accounting for 3.7 per cent of India’s total exports.
