BHUBANESWAR: Amid the changing geopolitical situation, the export performance of Odisha has been on a downward spiral even before the US imposed a 50 per cent (pc) tariff on goods from India this week.
The state, which was among the country’s fastest-growing export hubs a few years back, has been witnessing shipments slide from $17 billion in 2021-22 to just $10 billion in 2024-25, registering a staggering fall of over 40 per cent in four years.
As per the Ministry of Commerce statistics, exports from Odisha that had surged from $10.23 billion in 2020-21 to $17.06 billion in 2021-22 post-Covid, slumped to $11.22 billion in 2022-23 and $11.93 billion in 2023-24. However, states like Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh consistently performed well in 2024-25 as compared to 2023-24.
The highest exporters - Gujarat and Maharashtra with $116.33 billion and $65.88 billion in 2024-25, respectively have also witnessed a downturn of 13.4 pc and 2 pc, respectively. Odisha accounted for around 2.31 pc of India’s total exports of $437.42 billion and ranked ninth in the last fiscal, down from seventh in 2021-22.
The state exports the highest 21.53 pc goods to China, followed by 7.37 pc to Turkey, 6.5 pc to South Korea, 6.4 pc to UK, 5.5 pc to USA, 3.9 pc to Malaysia, 3.6 pc to Mexico, 3.5 pc to Vietnam, 3.1 pc to Japan and 3 pc to Italy. Of the 169 commodities exported from the country, Odisha dealt in 106 commodities and the top-10 commodities comprised a share of 97.93 pc of the total exports from the state.
Although the recent imposition of a 50 per cent tariff by the US has compounded concerns, exporters pointed out that the problems began much earlier. The state’s heavy dependence on minerals and metals such as iron ore, ferro alloys, steel and aluminium has left it vulnerable to global shocks.
A slowdown in Chinese demand, weak steel prices and stringent environmental standards in Europe have eroded Odisha’s market share, they said.
President of seafood exporters’ association Kamalesh Mishra said while other states have diversified into high-value sectors like pharmaceuticals, electronics and engineering goods, Odisha has failed to push beyond its traditional commodities. Limited gains in seafood, textiles and handicrafts have not been enough to cushion the fall, he said.