Preliminary data on India’s balance of payments (BoP) for the first quarter (Q1), i.e., April-June 2022-23, are presented in Statements I (BPM6 format) and II (old format).

Key Features of India’s BoP in Q1:2022-23

1. India’s current account balance recorded a deficit of US$ 23.9 billion (2.8 per cent of GDP) in Q1:2022-23, up from US$ 13.4 billion (1.5 per cent of GDP) in Q4:2021-22¹ and a surplus of US$ 6.6 billion (0.9 per cent of GDP) a year ago [i.e., Q1:2021-22].

2. Underlying the current account deficit in Q1:2022-23 was the widening of the merchandise trade deficit to US$ 68.6 billion from US$ 54.5 billion in Q4:2021-22 and an increase in net outgo of investment income payments.

3. Net services receipts increased, both sequentially and on a year-on-year (y-o-y) basis, on the back of rising exports of computer and business services.

4. Services exports grew y-o-y by 35.4 per cent, led by broad-based growth in computer, business, transportation, and travel services.

5. Private transfer receipts, mainly representing remittances by Indians employed overseas, amounted to US$ 25.6 billion, an increase of 22.6 per cent from their level a year ago.

6. Net outgo on the income account, primarily reflecting payments of investment income, increased to US$ 9.3 billion from US$ 7.5 billion a year ago.

7. In the financial account, net foreign direct investment increased to US$ 13.6 billion from US$ 11.6 billion a year ago.

8. Net foreign portfolio investment recorded outflows of US$ 14.6 billion as against net inflows of US$ 0.4 billion during Q1:2021-22.

9. Net external commercial borrowings to India recorded an outflow of US$ 3.0 billion in Q1:2022-23 as against an inflow of US$0.2 billion a year ago.

10. Non-resident deposits recorded net inflows of US$0.3 billion as compared with US$ 2.5 billion in Q1:2021-22.

11. There was an accretion of US$ 4.6 billion to the foreign exchange reserves (on a BoP basis) in Q1:2022-23 as compared with US$ 31.9 billion in Q1:2021-22 (Table 1).

(Yogesh Dayal)     
Chief General Manager

Press Release: 2022-2023/957

¹ /en/web/rbi/-/press-releases/developments-in-india-s-balance-of-payments-during-the-fourth-quarter-january-march-of-2021-22-53906. For longer time series data, please see: https://dbie.rbi.org.in/DBIE/dbie.rbi?site=statistics External Sector › International Trade › Quarterly/Yearly.