Economists had expected the deficit to be $30.20 billion in July, according to a Reuters poll.
The data underscores pressure on India to sustain exports and contain import costs as the disruptions in key shipping routes around the Middle East hit outgoing shipments amid high energy prices.
Merchandise exports rose to $44.24 billion in July from $40.41 billion in the previous month, government data showed, while imports rose to $76.22 billion against $70.84 billion in June.
India’s exports to West Asian countries rose 8.62 per cent to $5.7 billion in July, Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agarwal said in a press briefing on trade data.
Agarwal attributed the increase in the country’s outbound shipments to higher exports of petroleum products, electronics, engineering and marine goods.
Earlier this week, the U.S. and Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis reported separate attacks on shipping as prospects for ending the Iran war appeared to dim, with Tehran saying the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed unless Washington accepts its conditions.