The Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI) is closely monitoring the new US tariff announcements to determine their possible implication for India’s textile and apparel exports to the United States. The US is India’s biggest market for textile and apparel exports. During January-May 2025, US imports of textile and apparel from India were valued at $5.11 billion, a rise of more than 13% compared to the same period last year when the figure stood at $4.51 billion.
“We are actively tracking the progress of the latest tariff-related announcements, including their impact on specific sectors, since they concern many countries which are our competitors in the textile and apparel export arena,” CITI Chairman Rakesh Mehra said. “The initial signs in this connection augur well for Indian T&A exporters in terms of being able to expand their access in the US as they would now become more price competitive relative to those from other countries,” Mehra added.
The US has imposed a 35% tariff on exports from Bangladesh. During January-May 2025, US imports of textile and apparel from Bangladesh stood at $3.64 billion, a more than 20% increase compared to $3.03 billion recorded in January-May 2024.
Mehra said CITI is confident that a mini trade deal between India and the US would be in place soon. “As far as the possible mini trade deal with the US is concerned, CITI feels such a pact can transform the fortunes of India’s textile sector and can contribute significantly to India being able to achieve textiles and apparel exports of $100 billion by 2030,” Mehra said.
“The demand creation for Indian companies because of a trade pact with the US can also lead to the generation of more jobs and livelihood opportunities in India which, by itself, will be a significant benefit for local youths,” Mehra pointed out.
Mehra said recent steps being taken by the authorities to improve the ease of doing business, including those on the logistics front, will help Indian exporters take better advantage of the opportunities opening following the trade deals. “We look forward to working closely with the authorities for an increase in India’s share in global T&A exports,” Mehra added.
