The country’s current account deficit (CAD) widened to 4.4 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in the second quarter of the fiscal 2022-23 on higher merchandise trade deficit.
In the same quarter of fiscal 2022, CAD stood at 1.3 per cent of GDP and at 2.2 per cent of GDP in Q1 of FY2023, according to the data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Thursday.
In absolute terms, the current account balance recorded a deficit of $36.4 billion in Q2 FY2023 compared to a deficit of $9.7 billion in the corresponding period of the previous fiscal.
The rise in CAD was primarily on account of the widening of merchandise trade deficit reflecting the impact of slowing global demand on exports, even as growth in services exports and remittances remained robust, RBI’s Financial Stability Report (FSR) released on Thursday said.
The merchandise trade deficit widened to $83.5 billion…
