Government Adjusts Gold Import Figures

In a recent update, the commerce department has revised the value of gold imports downward by over $5 billion to $9.8 billion for November. This adjustment also affects the April-November period, with estimates lowered from $49 billion to $37.4 billion.

Impact on Trade Deficit

As a result of these revisions, the total imports for the eight-month period in 2024-25 are now estimated at $472.5 billion, down from the previously estimated $486.7 billion. The trade deficit for November has also been adjusted to around $31.7 billion, significantly lower than the earlier estimate of $37.9 billion, which was considered an all-time high.

Behind the Revisions

The revisions come after the Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics corrected its interpretation of customs data. The agency had mistakenly double-counted figures related to gold moved out of special economic zones. Despite these significant adjustments, the government has yet to comment on the matter, choosing instead to release the revised figures on the DGCI&S website.

Research body GTRI has raised concerns about the accuracy of trade data, suggesting that if such a significant error occurred with gold imports, similar discrepancies might exist for other commodities or time periods. The government is urged to review trade data proactively to ensure this is an isolated case and not indicative of a broader data accuracy problem.