The exchange of goods among people, states, and countries is referred to as a trade. The market is the place where such exchanges take place. Trade between two countries is called international trade.

It may take place through the sea, air, or land routes. While local trade is carried in cities, towns, and villages, state-level trade is carried between two or more states. The advancement of international trade of a country is an index to its economic prosperity. It is, therefore, considered the economic barometer for a country.

As the resources are space-bound, no country can survive without international trade. Export and import are the components of the trade. The balance of trade of a country is the difference between its export and import. When the value of export exceeds the value of imports, it is called a favorable balance of trade. On the contrary, if the value of imports exceeds the value of exports, it is termed as the unfavorable balance of trade. India has trade relations with all the major trading blocks and all geographical regions of the world.

Among the commodities of export, whose share has been increasing over the last few years till 2004-05 are agriculture and allied products (2.53 percent), ores and minerals (9.12 percent), gems and jewelry (26.75 percent), and chemical and allied products (24.45 percent), engineering goods( 35.63 percent) and petroleum products (86.12 percent)

The commodities imported to India include petroleum and petroleum products (41.87 percent), pearls and precious stones (29.26 percent), inorganic chemicals (29.39 percent coal, coke, and briquettes (94.17 percent), machinery (12.56 percent).

Bulk imports as a group registered a growth accounting for 39.09 percent of total imports. This group includes fertilizers (67.01 percent), cereals (25.23 percent), edible oils (7.94 percent), and newsprint (5.51 percent). International trade has undergone a sea change in the last fifteen years. The exchange of commodities and goods has been superseded by the exchange of information and knowledge.

Tourism

India has emerged as a software giant at the international level and it is earning large foreign exchange through the export of information technology. Tourism as a Trade. Tourism in India has grown substantially over the last three decades. Foreign tourist arrivals in the country witnessed an increase of 23.5 percent during the year 2004 as against the year 2003, thus contributing Rs 21,828 crore of foreign exchange.

Over 2.6 million foreign tourists visit India every year. More than 15 million people are directly engaged in the tourism industry. Tourism also promotes national integration, provides support to local handicrafts and cultural pursuits.

It also helps in the development of an international understanding of our culture and heritage. Foreign tourists visit India for heritage tourism, eco-tourism, adventure tourism, cultural tourism, medical tourism, and business tourism. Rajasthan, Goa, Jammu and Kashmir and temple towns of south India are important destinations for foreign tourists in India.

There is vast potential for tourism development in the north-eastern states and the interior parts of the Himalayas, but due to strategic reasons, these have not been encouraged so far. However, there lies a bright future ahead for this upcoming industry.

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