India's exports rose sharply in May to 25.9 billion US dollars but the imports also grew equally strikingly, pushing the trade deficit to 15 billion US dollars in a single month. Releasing the official trade data, Commerce Secretary Rahul Khullar said the imports grew highest in the last four years. He said the trade deficit is much larger than in the past two to three years. The imports in May went up by 54.1 per cent at 40.9 billion US dollars. Khullar said the larger trade gap is due to volatility in petroleum prices. Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma expressed confidence that the current account deficit will be kept manageable as country's exports were performing well. Sharma said India is a major importer of petroleum products and the situation needs to be carefully watched. The country's petroleum and oil lubricants imports in May increased by 18 per cent to 10.16 billion US dollars. India is aiming for merchandise exports of 300 billion US dollars in this fiscal year. Last year, shipments topped the government's estimate, rising to a record high of 245.9 billion US dollars.