India looking at expanding textiles exports to other markets, as it awaits clarity on US tariffs : Govt official
NEW DELHI : India is looking at expanding textiles exports in other markets, such as EU, and UK, even as it awaits clarity on US tariffs. A senior government official told that for Indian textiles all markets are important for India’s textiles and added that “US cannot be ignored”.
“We hope to expand our exports to UK and Europe. Hopefully, the FTAs will help the textile sector…We’ll have to see,” said the official. On the impact of 25% US tariffs on India’s textile exports, the official said that the government is still waiting for the details.
“We don’t know details of tariffs yet. Once we know, then we can do an analysis,” the person said. On Wednesday, US President Donald Trump announced a 25 percent tariff on India plus a ‘penalty’ amount, which has not been specified, effective August 1.
The US is India’s largest market for textile and apparel exports. During January-May 2025, US imports of textile and apparel from India were valued at $4.59 billion, up 13 percent compared to the same period last year. Earlier today, industry stakeholders told , that India’s textile and apparel industry will have to take a hit to margins to beat competition from rivals such as China, Bangladesh and Vietnam after US slapped a higher-than-expected 25 percent tariff on Indian goods.
India’s 25 percent tariff is lower than China’s 30 percent and Bangladesh’s 35 percent, but these countries can resort to deep price cuts, making it tougher for New Delhi to scale its exports to the US, the stakeholders said. At 20 percent, Vietnam has an edge over India and the other two countries. The US is India’s largest textile and apparel export market. In FY24, the US imported textiles worth $10.05 billion from India, accounting for 28 percent of its total textile exports. UK, meanwhile, imported textiles worth $1.6 billion from India during that year, and EU around $8 billion.
Apparel makes up the largest share of the export pie, followed by home textiles and made-ups such as bed linen, carpets, towels, table mats, aprons, napkins, curtains and upholstery. In a statement, the Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI) said: “Without a doubt, the new tariff rate is going to seriously test the resolve and resilience of India’s textile and apparel exporters, as we will not enjoy a significant duty differential advantage vis-à-vis many other countries, except Bangladesh, with whom we compete for a larger share of the US market.”
However, CITI remains hopeful that the tariff issue will get resolved once the proposed Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) between India and the United States is in place.
“CITI anticipates the tariff issue to get resolved following the BTA between India and the US. In the interim, we will have to deal with this tough situation in the best manner possible by doing all we can to raise the competitiveness of the Indian textile and apparel domain,” Rakesh Mehra, Chairman of CITI, said.