New Delhi [India], May 15 : Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal met Lenskart Co-founder and CEO Peyush Bansal to discuss the potential of making India a global hub for manufacturing and exporting eyewear.
The meeting focused on tapping into India's growing capabilities in this sector and reducing the country's dependence on imported eyewear products.
In a social media post the minister stated that he was pleased to see the steps
Lenskart is taking to improve access to vision care across India. He also spoke about how Indian companies like Lenskart can play a key role in boosting exports and creating a strong global presence for Indian-made eyewear.
He said "Met Mr. Peyush Bansal, Co-founder & CEO of Lenskart, and discussed how India can become a global manufacturing & export hub for eyewear. I was pleased to learn about the company's impactful social initiatives to expand access to vision care across the country".
According to data from the Observatory of Economic Complexity, India's share in global eyewear exports was only 0.39 per cent in 2023, placing the country at the 16th position out of 209.
In value terms, India exported eyewear worth USD 48.8 million in 2023, ranking 594 out of 1,212 products.
The United Kingdom was the top destination for Indian eyewear exports, receiving products worth USD 17.3 million. It was also the fastest-growing market for India, with exports increasing by USD 14.4 million from 2022 to 2023.
However, on the import side, India brought in eyewear worth USD 198 million in 2023, with China being the largest supplier at USD 171 million.
China is showing fastest growth by increasing its exports to India by USD 92.7 million between 2022 and 2023.
Further data from the World Integrated Trade Solutions (WITS) by the World Bank shows that India imported sunglasses worth USD 177,353.44K in 2023, with a total quantity of 193,266,000 items.
Most of these sunglasses came from China (USD 154,152.35K for 191,691,000 items), followed by Italy, the United States, Japan, and other Asian countries.
The Economic Complexity Index (ECI) for India stood at 0.65 in 2023, placing it 39th out of 132 countries. This index shows the diversity and complexity of a country's export products.
With high imports and low global export share, the meeting between Piyush Goyal and Peyush Bansal highlighted the need for India to boost local manufacturing and aim to become a major exporter of eyewear in the world.