Containerised exports grow 1% while imports contract 14% in India: Maersk

For Indian trade, 2020 was a year dominated by unprecedented challenges, irregular manufacturing and buying patterns, disrupted trade environments and lack of predictability. With the COVID-19 pandemic spreading across the world in a staggered manner and in varying proportions, the impact on containerised trade was felt the most in Q2 / 2020 when exports contracted by 34%. As societies began to find ways to coexist with COVID-19, trade started recovering in the second half. Exports ramped up sharply in Q3, not only recovering from Q2 slump, but even increased by 14% year on year, however the economic impact on consumers led to substantially lower imports, which dropped by 28% as compared to the same period of 2019. The last quarter of the year showed growth in both imports and exports, thus making solid strides towards returning to normalcy. Demand for Indian exports across multiple categories continues to remain exceptionally strong, much of it driven by consumer demand in North America and Europe.
Steve Felder, Managing Director, Maersk South Asia, said “Despite unprecedented challenging conditions, stakeholders across supply chains – from manufacturers to consumers, from Government bodies to logistics enablers – all stood up cautiously to fight the pandemic. Without the contribution from all the moving parts in the complex machinery of global trade, the path back to normalcy would not have been possible.”