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India's textile and apparel exports registered a decline in January compared with the same period last year, largely due to high tariffs imposed by the United States that remained in force till February 7.
The tariffs impacted export competitiveness and led to lower shipments during the month. According to the data shared by Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI), textile exports in January have declined by -3.68 per cent, while apparel exports are down by -3.84 per cent in January 2026 compared with January 2025. Overall, combined exports of textiles and apparel stood at 3,275.44 million US dollars in January 2026, down from 3,403.19 million US dollars in January 2025, registering a degrowth of -3.75 per cent. The decline was mainly seen across key textile segments. Exports of cotton yarn, fabrics, made-ups, and handloom products fell by -4.15 per cent to 995.58 million US dollars in January 2026 from 1,038.69 million US dollars in January 2025. Carpet exports also declined sharply by -12.05 per cent to 118.99 million US dollars, while exports of jute manufactured products, including floor coverings, dropped significantly by -18.92 per cent during the same period. Handicrafts, excluding handmade carpets, also saw a decline of -2.70 per cent. However, exports of man-made yarn, fabrics, and made-ups showed some resilience and recorded a slight growth of 1.01 per cent, rising to 430.29 million US dollars in January 2026 compared with 425.97 million US dollars in January 2025. The data further revealed that during the period from April 2025 to January 2026, textile exports registered a degrowth of -2.35 per cent, while apparel exports recorded a growth of 1.59 per cent compared with the same period of the previous financial year. Despite this growth in apparel exports, cumulative textile and apparel exports during April 2025 to January 2026 registered a marginal decline of -0.65 per cent compared with April 2024 to January 2025. The share of textile and apparel exports in India's total exports also declined. The sector accounted for 8.96 per cent of total exports in January 2026, compared with 9.37 per cent in January 2025. For the April 2025 to January 2026 period, the share stood at 8.13 per cent, lower than 8.36 per cent in the same period of the previous year. On the import side, imports of cotton raw and waste increased significantly by 12.33 per cent in January 2026 and rose sharply by 72.36 per cent during the April 2025 to January 2026 period. This increase suggests higher domestic demand for raw materials or supply adjustments within the textile industry. Now the outlook is expected to improve going forward following the United States' reduction of tariffs on February 7. The tariff reduction is likely to improve India's export competitiveness and support recovery in textile and apparel shipments in the coming months. (ANI)
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