Smartphones have risen to become India’s fourth-largest export category, achieving a 42% growth to reach US$ 15.6 billion in the fiscal year 2024. This advancement signifies a one-rank climb in the hierarchy of India’s top exported commodities compared to the previous year. Notably, it was from April 2022 that India began separately tracking smartphone exports. Traditionally, the country’s export portfolio has been heavily dominated by petroleum products, but now smartphones have taken a prominent place.
Government data reveals that the remarkable growth in smartphone exports was primarily fueled by a 158% increase in shipments to the United States, amounting to US$ 5.6 billion. Other significant destinations for Indian smartphones included the United Arab Emirates with exports worth US$ 2.6 billion, the Netherlands at US$ 1.2 billion, and the United Kingdom at US$ 1.1 billion. Additionally, the combined value of mobile devices produced in India, catering to both export and domestic markets, hit US$ 49.16 billion (Rs. 4.1 trillion) in FY24. This marks an estimated growth of at least 17% from the previous year, according to preliminary figures from the Indian Cellular and Electronics Association (ICEA), which represents a majority of the mobile phone companies in the nation.
