India's exports to free trade agreement (FTA) partners have shot up during the first quarter of 2026-27, with shipments to Singapore and Sri Lanka more than doubling and exports to ASEAN rising by more than 60 per cent, showing that the trade pacts are actually bearing fruit, according to reports.
The figures suggest that India's expanding network of trade agreements is increasingly translating negotiated market access into actual export momentum, according to an article in Tanzania's The Guardian newspaper. This distinction matters, since trade agreements can sometimes remain largely theoretical in their impact for years after signing, making concrete evidence of increased export activity a meaningful marker of their practical value.
The development comes at a significant point for India's external trade strategy. The country recorded its highest-ever combined exports of $863.1 billion in FY 2025-26, comprising merchandise exports of $441.8 billion and services exports of $421.3 billion, giving this latest FTA-driven growth added context within an already record-setting broader trade performance.
Beyond Volume: Widening Market Presence
The latest data with FTA partners shows that India is not merely expanding its export volumes, but increasingly using preferential trade arrangements to widen its market presence, the article stated, suggesting a qualitative shift in how Indian exporters are approaching international trade rather than simply a quantitative increase in existing trade flows.
Singapore and Sri Lanka Lead the Surge
Commerce Ministry data show that India's exports to Singapore rose 101.2 per cent year-on-year during April-June 2026, reaching $6.52 billion, up from $3.24 billion in the same period last year. Exports to Sri Lanka performed even more strongly, climbing 123.8 per cent to $2.35 billion from $1.05 billion, marking two of the most dramatic export gains among all of India's trading partners during the quarter.
Strong Growth Across ASEAN
The ASEAN region also registered a substantial increase, with Indian shipments rising 61.6 per cent to $14.61 billion in the first quarter of FY 2026-27, compared with $9.04 billion during April-June 2025. Within this broader regional trend, exports to Malaysia increased 75.2 per cent to $2.54 billion, while shipments to Australia rose 25.2 per cent to $2.68 billion.
Steady Gains With East Asian Partners
South Korea recorded 22.6 per cent growth to $1.95 billion, and Japan saw a 22.4 per cent increase to $1.75 billion, both notable gains even if more modest in scale compared to the sharper surges seen with Singapore and Sri Lanka.
Gains Across the Middle East and South Asia
Similarly, shipments to Oman increased 26.4 per cent to $1.39 billion, while exports to Nepal rose 18.1 per cent to $2.28 billion. Bhutan and Thailand also registered growth of 16.1 per cent and 6 per cent respectively, rounding out a broad pattern of export growth spanning multiple regions and trading partners simultaneously.
India's Expanding FTA Network
Recent trade agreements signed by New Delhi include the India-UAE CEPA, India-Australia ECTA, India-EFTA TEPA, India-Oman CEPA and the India-UK CETA. India has also concluded an FTA with New Zealand, which remains under ratification, while negotiations with the European Union were concluded in January 2026, indicating that India's trade agreement network continues to expand even as existing agreements begin showing measurable export impact.
Evidence of Active FTA Utilisation
The Commerce Ministry's latest assessment shows that Indian exporters are actively using preferential arrangements. Under the India-UAE CEPA, 4.45 lakh Certificates of Origin have been issued since the agreement came into force in May 2022, a Certificate of Origin being the documentation exporters need to claim the preferential tariff rates negotiated under the agreement, and a high volume of such certificates indicates genuine, sustained utilisation of the deal's benefits rather than merely nominal engagement.
Expanding Product Categories Under the UAE Deal
The number of Indian tariff lines exported to the UAE at the HS eight-digit level increased from 7,546 in FY 2021-22 to 8,053 in FY 2025-26, with exports across these lines valued at $37.3 billion. That expansion is important because it indicates that the benefit of an FTA is not restricted to lower tariffs on established products. It can also help exporters enter additional product categories and deepen their presence in an existing market, a distinction that speaks to the deeper, structural value an FTA can offer beyond simple price competitiveness on goods already being traded.
A Similar Pattern With Australia
Australia provides another example of this dynamic. Since the India-Australia ECTA entered into force in December 2022, 2.73 lakh Certificates of Origin have been issued. The number of tariff lines exported from India to Australia increased from 5,396 in FY 2021-22 to 5,668 in FY 2025-26, with exports across those lines reaching about $7.2 billion, the article added, reinforcing the broader pattern seen with the UAE agreement of FTAs enabling both deeper penetration of existing product lines and genuine diversification into new export categories.
