New Delhi, Sep 1 - India's merchandise exports fell for the 10th straight month in July and were valued 28.4 percent lower at $13.62 billion against $19.04 billion during the corresponding month last year, latest trade data showed Tuesday.

Cumulative value of exports for the first four months of this fiscal (April-July) was $49.65 billion - 34.1 percent lower than the $75.29 billion that was logged during the year-ago period, as per the data released by the commerce ministry.

The country's imports during July also declined 37.1 percent to $19.62 billion from $31.19 billion, while the cumulative value for the four-month period showed a 32.5 percent decline to $78.56 billion from $116.38 billion.

But thanks to the comparatively lower global crude oil prices, the country's import bill on this count was lower by as much as 55.5 percent in July at $56.38 billion, as against $126.75 billion in the corresponding month last year.

Oil imports during April-July were valued at $219.64 billion, which was 48 percent lower than $422.17 billion in the like period of last fiscal.

India's trade deficit for April-July was accordingly estimated at $289.13 billion, lower than the $410.93 billion during the year-ago period.