India’s apparel exports continued to grow in double digits, clocking a 11.3% on-year rise in May, showed data compiled by industry body Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI). Exports are getting a boost with buyers in the West increasingly sharpening their focus on India as a reliable apparel sourcing alternative to Bangladesh and China.
Apparel exports accelerated to grow in double digits due to political uncertainties caused by the ouster of the Sheikh Hasina government in Bangladesh last August. Exports surged by 17.3% in September, and further by 24.35% in October.
Many buyers from developed nations are pushing Indian suppliers to expand capacities and get requisite certifications, as the country will get a duty differential advantage over China due to the reciprocal tariffs imposed by the Donald Trump administration.
The export surge is a welcome relief for India’s apparel industry which faced two straight years of weakness after the pandemic.
“There was a fall in India’s apparel exports after Covid, as consumers bought fewer newer clothes due to excess purchases made during the Covid period. There was a period of stagnation or degrowth for about two years post Covid,” said Sanjay K Jain, chairman, National Textile Committee, Indian Chamber of Commerce.
The industry started seeing green shoots of recovery following the regime change in Bangladesh and political turbulence. Industry leaders said as apparel supplies are a continuous process, buyers do not prefer uncertainties in the supply chain. Unlike their Indian counterparts, apparel manufacturers in Bangladesh have huge capacities which can cater to bulk orders within a short period.
The Indian industry expects the export momentum to sustain due to the duty differential advantage over China. “There is a big window of opportunity for Indian apparel exporters. The $120 billion US market is the biggest opportunity. All we need is to get the raw material at competitive rates,” said Jain.
India has a $10 billion share of the US market, compared to China’s $30 billion.
Even as apparel exports continue to gather pace, imports of raw cotton are also increasing as domestic cotton prices are trending higher than international prices. India’s cotton imports in 2024-25 are estimated to be more than double that of the previous year.
According to the Cotton Association of India, the country is expected to have imported 3.3 million bales of 170 kilograms of cotton each in 2024-25, up from 1.52 million bales in the previous year.
