The Chief Minister's Office of Karnataka announced on Tuesday, June 16, 2026, that the state has emerged as the top-ranked state in India for software and services exports, with total exports rising 9.5 per cent in financial year 2025-26 to reach approximately ₹19.7 lakh crore. The post, attributed to Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, credits the state's sustained economic growth, forward-looking industrial policy, and business-friendly governance for the achievement.

Context

The official post, written in Kannada, states: 'ನಮ್ಮ ಸರ್ಕಾರದ ಸುಸ್ಥಿರ ಆರ್ಥಿಕ ಅಭಿವೃದ್ಧಿ, ದೂರದೃಷ್ಟಿಯ ಕೈಗಾರಿಕಾ ನೀತಿ, ಉದ್ಯಮ ಸ್ನೇಹಿ ಆಡಳಿತ' ['our government's sustainable economic development, visionary industrial policy, and business-friendly governance']. It declares Karnataka as the number-one state in software and services exports and fourth in merchandise exports nationally. The announcement positions these rankings as direct outcomes of deliberate state-level policy choices rather than incidental gains.

Total export value of roughly ₹19.7 lakh crore in FY 2025-26 represents a 9.5 per cent year-on-year expansion, according to the post. The CMO notes that Karnataka's products, services, and innovations have reached global markets, unlocking fresh opportunities for investment, enterprise formation, and job creation within the state.

Policy Backdrop

Karnataka's Industrial Policy 2020-25 set explicit targets for manufacturing expansion, foreign direct investment attraction, and export growth, backed by incentive structures and single-window clearances. The state's edge in software and services exports is rooted in Bengaluru's decades-long status as India's primary technology and innovation hub, home to a dense cluster of global IT firms, engineering centres, and start-ups.

Beyond software, the state has been actively working to diversify its export basket into electronics, aerospace, and engineering goods — sectors that also underpin its fourth-place standing in merchandise exports. These efforts mirror strategies pursued by Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, and Gujarat, as Indian states increasingly compete on export performance metrics aligned with central government trade-expansion goals and production-linked incentive schemes.

Stakeholders and Impact

The primary beneficiaries of the export surge are IT and software companies, manufacturing exporters, and the skilled workforce concentrated in Bengaluru and Karnataka's tier-2 cities. A rising export profile typically strengthens the state's case for attracting further FDI, as global investors use export competitiveness as a proxy for regulatory ease and infrastructure quality.

For the broader workforce, the CMO post explicitly links Karnataka's global trade reach to 'new investments, establishment of enterprises, and open opportunities for job creation' within the state. The claim signals that the government intends to use the export milestone as a platform for the next phase of industrial and employment policy.

What's Next

Attention will now turn to the release of final FY 2025-26 state-wise export data from the central commerce ministry, which will independently corroborate or qualify the figures cited by the CMO. A mid-term review of Karnataka's current industrial policy framework is also expected to shape investment targets and sector-specific export incentives going forward.

If the rankings hold in official data, Karnataka could leverage the number-one software-export position to negotiate stronger central support for logistics infrastructure, port connectivity, and skilling programmes — all critical to sustaining double-digit export growth in subsequent years.