Planning commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia on Monday said decline in exports was expected due to global slowdown.
"Of course, decline in exports is regrettable but we will have to wait for recovery in the global economy to counter that," Ahluwalia said in a book release function at Assocham.
India's exports fell for the first time in seven years by 12 per cent in October on sagging demand from the world's two biggest consumer markets -- the US and Europe -- widening the trade deficit further.
He, however, said that India's position on balance of payments (BOP) is reasonably comfortable.
BOP is an indicator of economic stability of a country. The current account deficit for the first quarter was placed at $10.7 billion, primarily due to strong growth of imports (33.3 per cent) vis-a-vis exports (22.2 per cent).