Mobile phone exports from India have witnessed a boom in 2018 with the country jumping 21 positions to the 17th spot on the exporters list. Indian companies sold mobile phones worth $1.07 bn in 2018, said a statement by the Federation of Indian Export Organisations. Mobile phone exports from India grew 17 per cent annually in the last 5 years, becoming the 23rd largest export item from the country. In July 2018, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a Samsung facility in Noida which is the world’s largest mobile phone manufacturing unit. The facility exports mobile handsets to overseas markets. Hong Kong, UAE, and Russia are the top 3 export destinations for Indian manufacturers.

China, Vietnam and Hong Kong remained the top three exporters of mobile phones in 2018. China alone comprised 49 per cent of the world’s mobile phone exports, whereas Vietnam and Hong Kong accounted for 13 per cent and 10.9 per cent, respectively, according to the World’s Top Exports. Though India accounted for a mere 0.4 per cent of the world’s total mobile phone exports, the future looks bright for the country.

“There was a set back due to the closure of Nokia factory but things are being corrected now and the exports of mobile phones have shot up,” Sharad Kumar Saraf, President, FIEO told Financial Express Online. The mobile phones exports are expected to grow further as Chinese investments in the Indian mobile phone market is likely to come in the near future, he added.

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Exports of telephones for cellular networks or for other wireless networks have dramatically shot up, registering a whopping 660 per cent year-on-year growth in the last financial year 2018-19. These phones worth around $1.6 billion were exported from India in 2018-19, which were hovering around $200 million in the past few years, according to the Department of Commerce.