The first such battle since 2020 occurred last week at the eastern end of the boundary between Chinese and Indian army personnel. Trade between the two of Asia's major economies has been booming despite the difficult bilateral relations between the two close neighbours. Between India and China, total trade climbed by 29% over the previous five years, reaching $115.44 billion in FY22 from $89.72 billion in FY18.

In FY22, India sent $422.2 billion worth of goods abroad. In this case, more than 5% of all Indian exports come from China. With an export value of $21.2 billion in FY22 compared to $13.3 billion in FY18, India's exports to China surged by 59%. Engineering goods ($5.4 billion), agricultural and related products ($3.8 billion), ores and minerals ($2.9 billion), chemicals and associated goods ($2.9 billion), and petroleum and crude products ($1.9 billion) are among India's top exports to China.

India's trade imbalance with China has increased by 16% over the past five years, despite the country's expanding exports to China. From $63 billion in FY18 to $73 billion in FY22, India's trade deficit increased. This expanding trade deficit shows that India's import growth is exceeding its export growth. China-related imports into India increased by 23% during a five-year period, from $76.4 billion in FY18 to $94.2 billion in FY22.

China accounted for 15.4% of all imports into India in FY22. India brought in $613.2 billion worth of commodities from around the globe, including $94.2 billion from China alone. Electronics ($35.4 billion), engineering ($24.9 billion), chemicals and associated items ($19.6 billion), other manufactured goods ($8.3 billion), and textiles ($2.8 billion) are among India's top imports from China.