Budget 2018: Arun Jaitley said India's exports will expand to about 15 per cent during the current fiscal

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today said the country's exports are likely to expand by about 15 per cent during the current fiscal."Our exports are expected to grow at about 15 per cent in 2017-18," he said while presenting Union Budget 2018-19 here.The country's merchandise shipments rose 12.36 per cent to USD 27.03 billion in December 2017.Cumulatively, exports during April-December 2017-18 grew by 12.05 per cent to USD 223.512 billion.Total exports value was recorded at USD 274.64 billion in 2016-17, up from USD 262.29 billion in the preceding year.Currently, the government provides export incentives through two schemes merchandise and services export.

In December last year, the government announced incentives worth Rs 8,450 crore to boost exports of goods and services, mainly from labour-intensive sectors.