By Nikunj Ohri and Manoj Kumar
NEW DELHI (Reuters) -India's trade deficit widened in July, hurt by weak exports, government data showed on Wednesday, amid renewed doubts about the resilience of the global economy.
The merchandise trade deficit was $23.5 billion in July, higher than economists' expectation of $21.35 billion, according to a Reuters poll. In June, the trade deficit was $20.98 billion.
India's merchandise exports were $33.98 billion in July, while imports were $57.48 billion, the data showed.
In June, merchandise exports were $35.20 billion, while imports were $56.18 billion.
"Second consecutive month of decline in goods exports suggests global demand is still sluggish. Nine-month high goods trade deficit is not a good sign for the economy and currency," said Devendra Pant, an economist at India Ratings and Research.
Fears of a recession in United States after weak jobs data shook investor confidence earlier this month, leading to a global sell off and highlighting the fragile nature of recovery in the world economy.
Amid uncertainties, India is exploring new markets such as Africa and is looking to diversify its export goods basket to offset the weakness in western economies, Trade Secretary Sunil Barthwal told reporters in New Delhi.
India's services exports, however, held steady during in July.
Services exports were $28.43 billion in July, while services imports were $14.55 billion, compared with $28.82 billion and $15.02 billion, respectively, in June.
"Our exports are holding on despite what is happening globally, reflected in substantial increase in engineering and electronics good exports," Barthwal said.
"Monthly fluctuations in exports are largely impacted by crude oil prices."
Gold imports were $3.13 billion in July, compared with $3.06 billion in June.
India, which is the world's third largest consumer of oil, imported $13.8 billion worth of oil in July, compared with $15.05 billion in the previous month, the government said.