India Japan Trade

Japan’s exports to India were 2.62% of India’s total imports and India’s exports to Japan were 1.18% of India’s total exports during FY24.

Last updated: Mar, 2024

Introduction

India and Japan maintain a close friendship with a long history rooted in spiritual affinity and strong culture. The civilization ties go back to the visit of the Indian monk Bodhisena in 752 AD. India and Japan established diplomatic relations in 1952. Since then, the relationship has transformed into a partnership of great substance and purpose. Today, Japan is regarded as a significant partner in India’s economic transformation.

India-Japan Trade

Japan’s bilateral trade with India totalled US$ 21.96 billion during FY23.
Exports from Japan to India during FY23 were US$ 16.49 billion and imports were US$ 5.46 billion.
Japan’s exports to India were 2.65% of India’s total imports and India’s exports to Japan were 1.19% of India’s total exports during April-November 2023.
Japan’s bilateral trade with India from April-November 2023 totalled US$ 15.17 billion.

Major exported items from India to Japan with amount & quantity

India exported 4,557 commodities to Japan in FY23.
India’s exports to Japan stood at US$ 5.46 billion in FY23.
Major exported items from India to Japan include marine products (US$ 487 million), petroleum products (US$ 296 million), organic chemicals (US$ 292 million), aluminium, products of aluminium (US$ 292 million), pearl, precs, and semiprecs (US$ 280 million), etc during FY23.
India’s exports to Japan stood at US$ 3.33 billion during April-November 2023.
Major exported items from India to Japan include engineering goods (US$ 1.18 billion), organic and inorganic chemicals (US$ 570.6 million) marine products (US$ 289.5 million), gems and jewellery (US$ 180.4 million), etc. during April-November 2023.

Major imported items by India from Japan with amount & quantity

India imported 4,374 commodities from Japan in FY23.
Imports from Japan to India stood at US$ 16.49 billion in FY23.
India's imports from Japan include residual chemicals (US$ 2.27 billion), iron and steel (US$ 1.39 billion), copper (US$ 1.29 billion), INDL Machinery for dairy etc (US$ 1.14 billion), plastic raw materials (US$ 1.04 billion), etc during FY23.
Imports from Japan to India stood at US$ 11.84 billion during April-November 2023.
India's imports from Japan include nuclear reactors, boilers, and parts thereof (US$ 2.17 billion), copper and copper products (US$ 1.68 billion), electrical equipment (US$ 1.30 billion), inorganic chemicals and allied products (US$ 1.09 billion), iron and steel (US$ 930.34 million) during April-November 2023.

Recent Trends & developments

In 2023, Foreign Minister, Mr. Yoshimasa Hayashi mentioned that 2023 is a crucial year as Japan chairs G7 and India chairs G20. As the premier forum for international economic cooperation, G20 is of paramount importance for responding effectively to issues facing the international community, such as food security and development. As the G7 President, Japan wishes to coordinate closely with the G20 President, India.
In 2022, the two countries will celebrate the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations.
As part of celebrations for India@75 and India-Japan@70, an India-Japan webinar on “Exploring Tamil Nadu and its Potential Agricultural & Processed Food Products” was jointly organized by the Embassy of India, Japan and Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority, India (APEDA) on February 7, 2022, to promote the business opportunities in Agri and Food processing sector from Tamil Nadu among the companies in Japan.
Japan-India Foreign Ministers’ Meeting was held on February 11, 2022, wherein it was reaffirmed to promote economic cooperation including in digital, climate change countermeasures, healthcare, as well as economic security cooperation in fields such as Beyond 5G, undersea cables, and supply chain resilience, in addition to cooperation in India’s North-eastern region and steadily advancing the High-Speed Rail Project, the flagship project of Japan and India. Moreover, views on cooperation in regional affairs such as Myanmar and international cooperation including WTO, disarmament and non-proliferation, and UN Security Council reform were also exchanged.
In March 2022, Prime Minister of Japan visited India for the first time in four and a half years as Prime Minister of Japan. In May 2022, Prime Minister Modi visited Japan for the Japan-Australia-India-U.S. Summit Meeting held in Japan. The two leaders concurred to further develop Japan-India relations and work closely toward the realisation of a “Free and Open Indo-Pacific.”
The 7th Joint Working Group under India-Japan ICT Comprehensive Cooperation Framework was held on May 13, 2022, through hybrid mode.
The Fourth Japan-India Cyber Dialogue was held on June 30, 2022. Areas of discussion included national cyber policies and cybersecurity strategies, the recent cyber threat landscape, ICT supply chain risks and 5G policies. Both sides also discussed bilateral cooperation in the field of capacity building as well as cooperation under the UN, QUAD (Japan-Australia-India-U.S.) and ASEAN Regional Forum.
Second Japan-India 2+2 Foreign and Defence Ministerial Meeting was held on September 8, 2022. The Ministers discussed regional and global affairs, bilateral security and defence cooperation, and coordination among like-minded countries, bearing in mind Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi’s possible future visit to Japan as part of the annual mutual visit by the leaders. In view of their respective presidencies of the G7 and G20 next year, they confirmed that both countries will work closely to lead the international community.
Agreement between the Government of Japan and the Government of the Republic of India Concerning Reciprocal Provision of Supplies and Services between the Self-Defence Forces of Japan and the Indian Armed Forces (2021).
During 2021-22, the Embassy of India, Japan in association with the Japan Tea Association (JTA), Tea Board of India organized the 223rd and 224th Indian Tea Seminar called “Chai-Varta” in the month of July 2021 and October 2021, respectively. A webinar titled “Festival of Indian Tea” was also held on February 15, 2022. The objective of these events is to promote Indian tea in Japan and to increase collaboration among Indian and Japanese companies in the Tea sector.
The two countries signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) on specified skilled workers in January 2021 to promote the movement of skilled workers from India to Japan for employment on a contractual basis.
Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution and Textiles, Mr. Piyush Goyal addresses G7 Trade Ministers in Osaka, emphasizing the need for resilient supply chains post-COVID and geopolitical events. He advocates for public-private partnerships, infrastructure investment, and collaborative regulatory frameworks to boost cross-border trade. Notable positive experiences from private sectors, like Suzuki achieving over 95% indigenisation in India, were highlighted. ERIA underscores India's expanding role in global value chains.
Chief of Defence Staff General Mr. Anil Chauhan embarks on an official visit to Japan, aiming to strengthen defence ties. His itinerary features meetings with top Japanese military officials, including the Minister of Defence, Chief of Staff, Joint Staff, and key representatives from the Acquisition Technology & Logistics Agency and National Institute of Defence Studies. This visit signifies the growing significance of India-Japan Defence Cooperation.
India and ADB sign a US$ 250 million loan for the Delhi-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System Corridor. This funding enhances urban mobility, connecting Delhi to neighbouring cities and reducing carbon emissions. The agreement supports the NCR Regional Plan 2021's priority rail corridors, featuring multi-modal hubs for seamless transportation. The ADB's initial US$ 1,049 million financing in 2020 included a US$ 500 million tranche, with an additional US$ 500 million co-financed by AIIB.

Economic Relations

Economic relations between India and Japan have vast potential for growth, given the obvious complementarities that exist between the two Asian economies. Japan's interest in India is increasing due to a variety of reasons including India's big and growing market and its resources, especially human resources. The signing of the historic India-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) and its implementation in August 2011 has accelerated economic and commercial relations between the two countries.
During the visit of the Hon’ble Prime Minister of Japan Mr. Fumio Kishida to India in March 2022, both Prime Ministers expressed the intention to realize US$ 37 billion (JPY 5 trillion) of public and private investment and financing from Japan to India in the next five years, to finance appropriate public and private projects of mutual interest.
In recent years, the economic relationship between the two countries has expanded and deepened steadily. The trade volume has increased with India being Japan’s 18th largest trading partner. Japan was the 12th largest trading partner for India in 2020.
Direct investment from Japan to India has increased, and Japan is currently the 5th largest investor in India. Presently, about 1,455 Japanese companies have branches in India. Besides, the two nations had committed to building a High-Speed Railway in India by introducing Japan’s Shinkansen System, which is the flagship project of Japan-India relations.

Conclusion

The two countries have witnessed increasing bilateral and multilateral engagement and strengthening of the India-Japan Special Strategic and Global Partnership. The two sides maintained the momentum in ties despite the pandemic. Apart from this, the two countries are working together across sectors such as health and medical care, transportation, power and energy, urban environment management, and agricultural and rural development.

Contacts

Embassy of India in Japan
Address: 2-2-11 Kudan-Minami, Chiyoda-Ku, Tokyo, 102-0074;
Telephone: (81-3) 3262-2391 to 97