Exports shot up by 23.2 per cent year-on-year to 18.02 billion US Dollars in September this fiscal. Imports for September grew by annual over 26 per cent to 27.14 billion US Dollar. Commerce Secretary Rahul Khullar said in New Delhi on Monday that for the first half of the fiscal exports increased by 27.6 percent aggregating 103.30 billion US dollar.The cumulative imports for this period went up to 166.5 billion US Dollar leaving a large trade gap of 63.2 billion US Dollars. He said that the trade deficit for September alone was 9.12 billion US Dollars. Mr Khullar attributed the increase in exports to a very strong low base of comparison last fiscal, when the global trade was hit by economic slowdown worldwide.