India’s engineering goods exports recorded a growth of 6.74 per cent to scale an all-time high of $116.67 billion in for the financial year ended on March 31, 2025, according to figures compiled by the Engineering Export Promotion Council (EEPC).

The total value of engineering exports stood at $109.30 billion in 2023-24 while the earlier record level was $112.10 billion achieved in fiscal 2021-22.

While the US remained the number one destination for Indian engineering exports in FY25, significant export growth was noted in the UAE, Singapore, Nepal, Japan and France.

Engineering goods exports to the US grew 8.7 per cent to $19.15 billion in FY25 from $17.62 billion in FY24.

The share of engineering exports in India’s overall merchandise exports increased to 26.67 per cent in 2024-25 from 25.01 per cent in the previous fiscal year.

"The performance of Indian engineering exports was remarkable in 2024-25 as it came during a period of extreme global uncertainty following geopolitical disturbances and economic slowdown in major developed and emerging nations. This was further aggravated by US President Donald Trump's decision to raise import duty on dozens of its trade partners, including India," said Pankaj Chadha, Chairman, EEPC India.

As many as 28 out of 34 engineering panels recorded positive growth, and the remaining six engineering panels, including iron and steel, some non-ferrous sectors, including copper and aluminum products, office equipment, other construction machinery, and mica products, recorded negative growth during April-March 2024-25.

North America maintained its spot as the number one export destination with a share of 20.5 per cent, followed by the EU (17.1 per cent) and WANA (West Asia and North Africa) (16.7 pear cent) in 2024-25.

In cumulative terms, all regions experienced growth, barring Oceania (-10.4 per cent) and the EU (-1.9 per cent) in the financial year ending March 2025.

Despite achieving a record high figure in 2024-25, Indian engineering exports declined on a monthly basis in March 2025. Engineering exports in March 2025 were recorded at $10.82 billion as against US$11.27 billion in March 2024, registering a decline of 3.92 per cent year-on-year.

"In the coming days, the engineering exporting community of India needs to prepare for the continually changing and uncertain global trade dynamics. The global trade is undergoing significant disruptions, the most important being the announcement of US President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day Tariff,” which has already sparked retaliatory measures from other countries and concerns about global economic stability," said Chadha.

The WTO has already sounded caution, stating that under the current conditions, the volume of global merchandise trade is likely to fall by 0.2 per cent in 2025.

As per the WTO, a temporary tariff pause by the US may arrest some trade contraction, there are significant downside risks, including retaliation by other countries and policy uncertainty, which may further impact global trade volume by around 1.5 per cent, particularly hurting the export-oriented least developed countries.

"In this situation, it is important for the government and the industry to adopt strategies that will help us mitigate the issue to our advantage. The decision to negotiate a bilateral trade agreement with the US is a welcome step. Simultaneous to this, it is also essential for us to diversify our export destinations," the EEPC India Chairman added.