Capitalise on China+1 strategy: SBI Research

India should capitalise on the 'China+1' strategy, avoid protectionism and correct inverted duty structure to boost its export competitiveness, a State Bank of India Research note said on Monday. It said while the focus of the One District One Product - District Export Hub (ODOP-DEH) on Geographical Indicator products was good, the country can also capitalise more on raw materials and intermediate goods for integrating in global value chains.

According to the note, the initiative had resulted in a nearly four times jump in exports on an average across states since 2018-19. "With the introduction of ODOP-DEH in FY '20, exports have seen tremendous increase in nearly all states with exports of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal having increased more than thrice since the introduction of ODOP-DEH initiative," said Soumya Kanti Ghosh, group chief economic advisor, State Bank of India.

The note argued for giving services exports a more prominent place under the initiative since nearly 55% of India's GDP comes from services.


India's merchandise exports are poised to surpass $420 billion this financial year on the back of a push from production-linked incentives scheme, multi-year high commodity and food prices and higher exports of finished or intermediate goods, said the note.

The country's exports touched a record $420 billion in 2021-22 and stood at $229 billion in the first half of this fiscal, said the note. "At this rate, India's exports are on par to overtake $420 billion in the current fiscal," it said.