India's Trade Shifts: Steel Exports Rise, Smartphones Boom

India has started exporting more steel than it imports.

This change happened because the government put rules to stop cheap steel from coming in.

Even though people are buying less steel, factories are making more, so they are selling it to other countries like Europe and Vietnam.

The government also added taxes on some steel products to help local companies.

Additionally, India's smartphone exports hit a record $30 billion in 2025, thanks to the government's production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme.

This scheme has helped companies like Apple export more iPhones made in India.

The country's merchandise exports also saw a slight increase in December 2025, showing positive growth despite global uncertainties.

However, the future of steel exports is not certain because it depends on rules in other countries and how competitive Indian steel is.