India’s electronics exports are set to cross the Rs 3-lakh-crore mark for the first time in FY25. Though the final numbers are yet to be announced, the April-February figures make it clear that the sector is all but certain to achieve the record. During the 11-month period, electronics exports touched Rs 2.87 lakh crore, up 35% from Rs 2.11 lakh crore during the corresponding period in the previous financial year.
The growth in shipments came at a time the overall merchandise exports remained flat. It reflects success of the multiple schemes and programmes implemented by the ministry of electronics and IT (MeitY) in the past few years, especially the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for smartphones, launched in 2021.
Smartphones continue to be the top contributor to electronics exports growth. In FY24, smartphone exports to the tune of Rs 1.3 lakh crore constituted nearly 54% of the Rs 2.41-lakh-crore electronics exports. In the first 11 months of FY25, smartphone exports of Rs 1.75 lakh crore account for 60% of the total electronics exports. Among companies, Apple, whose iPhone exports reached Rs 1.25 lakh crore in the first 11 months of FY25, contributed 43% of the total electronics exports and 70% of the total smartphone exports. This figure is expected to rise by the end of FY25 when final export numbers come in at the end of March.
At the end of FY24, the electronics sector was ranked as the fifth-largest export basket, behind engineering goods, petroleum, gems & jewellery, and organic and inorganic chemicals. During the current fiscal, it has jumped two positions and is now the third largest, behind engineering goods and petroleum.
Further, due to a reduction in petroleum exports and an increase in electronics exports, the gap between the second-placed petroleum products and electronics is decreasing sharply. For instance, in FY24, exports of petroleum led that of electronics by Rs 4.4 lakh crore. In the first 11 months of FY25, the gap is down to Rs 2 lakh crore. Encouraged by this unparalleled performance of the electronics sector, the government is actively considering a component development scheme with the aim to deepen the ecosystem, build resilience and shift supply chains.
