The United States has levied high tariffs on India, potentially affecting a significant portion of Indian exports. This move places India among the most heavily penalized nations under the new tariff regime. India’s competitors, including Pakistan, Vietnam, Bangladesh and Turkey, were levied lower tariffs of 15-20%. The steep duty could hurt nearly half of India’s exports of more than $85 billion to the US. Ongoing trade negotiations between India and the US aim to address these concerns. The Indian government downplays the impact, emphasizing its commitment to protecting national interests.
Source: The Economic Times
A reset in India-US trade talks may be needed, potentially through a conversation between President Trump and Prime Minister Modi, according to Mark Linscott. Despite new tariffs and criticisms from Trump, Linscott sees the situation as a "hiccup," emphasizing the US desire for a short-term agreement followed by a longer-term bilateral trade deal.
Source: The Economic Times
The Government has finalized setting up of PM Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel (PM MITRA) Parks at 7 sites viz. Tamil Nadu (Virudhnagar), Telangana (Warangal), Gujarat (Navasari), Karnataka (Kalaburagi), Madhya Pradesh (Dhar), Uttar Pradesh (Lucknow) and Maharashtra (Amravati) with an outlay of Rs. 4,445 cr for a period of seven years upto 2027-28. The PM MITRA scheme aims to attract Rs. 70,000 crore in investments and create nearly 20 lakh direct and indirect jobs.
The Government is implementing Samarth (Scheme for Capacity Building in Textiles Sector) with the objective to provide demand driven, placement-oriented skilling programmes to supplement the efforts of the industry in creating jobs in the organized textile and related sectors, covering the entire value chain of textiles, excluding Spinning and Weaving sectors. Samarth is implemented on a PAN India basis. Currently in Haryana state, 26 Implementing Partners with 80 active training centres are working in entry level training programme and Up/Re-skilling training programme under Samarth.
Government provides financial support to various Export Promotion Councils and Trade Bodies engaged in promotion of textiles and garments exports, for organising and participating in trade fairs, exhibitions, buyer-seller meets etc. at national and international levels in order to boost exports. In addition, Government is implementing National Technical Textiles Mission (NTTM) with an outlay of 1,480 cr. (2020-21 to 2025-26) to boost technical textiles in the country including in Haryana.
Source: PIB
As geopolitical tensions and US tariffs affect the global supply chain, businesses across the world are looking at new strategies to navigate the disruptions in trade. Against this backdrop, industry associations from Tiruppur and Surat, two major textile clusters in India, are currently engaged in talks to explore mutual synergies that could enhance the man-made fibre (MMF) trade from the country.
Both clusters are renowned for their expertise in distinct segments of the textile trade. Surat is recognised as India’s leading MMF manufacturing hub, while Tiruppur is widely known as the knitwear capital of the country.
Members from the Southern Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SGCCI) in Surat are expected to visit Tiruppur between August and September this year to have a concrete discussion with the Tiruppur Exporters’ Association (TEA) to deliberate further on the matter.
Source: MSN
A high-ranking U.S. official has emphasised that mending the trade rift with India is no quick fix, largely due to the intricate web of geopolitical challenges. President Trump's recent imposition of tariffs on Indian imports complicates ongoing trade discussions and threatens the potential for a robust partnership.
Source: The Economic Times
COIMBATORE: Textile industry stakeholders have voiced concern over the recent hike in US tariffs on textile and garment imports, warning that the move could dent export competitiveness and disrupt trade momentum at a time when India is expanding its global trade engagements. Southern India Mills’ Association (SIMA) expressed concern over the US tariff decision. While India was celebrating the progress of its Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the UK and ongoing trade negotiations with the European Union, the unexpected tariff hike by the US came as a major setback. India currently exports about US$11 billion worth of textiles and garments to the US, accounting for nearly 30% of the country’s total garment exports. India’s share in the US garment import market saw steady growth, from 4.5% in 2020 to 5.8% in 2024.
Source: Times of India
A 25% US tariff threatens to cripple India’s $37-billion textile export industry, risking mass layoffs and loss of global competitiveness. Exporters warn of below-cost sales, MSME strain, and shrinking US market share as trade talks remain uncertain amid peak buying seasons.
The United States’ decision to impose a 25% tariff and penalty on Indian imports is set to severely dent India’s textile and apparel exports, with manufacturers warning of below-cost sales and potential mass layoffs in the country’s second-largest employment-generating sector.
India’s $37-billion textile and apparel export industry now finds itself at a pricing disadvantage vis-a-vis competitors like Bangladesh, Vietnam, and Indonesia—countries that face significantly lower duties. In FY25, India exported $10.7 billion worth of textiles and apparel to the US, accounting for 29% of total sector exports. The country had hoped to expand its market share in the US—the world’s largest apparel market—from 6%, but that ambition is now at risk.
Source: Financial Express
In the second quarter of 2025, the index of orders for textile machinery, compiled by the Economics Department of ACIMIT, the Association of Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers, showed a slight decrease compared to the same period in 2024 (-1%). In absolute terms, the index stood at 47.1 points (base year 2021=100).
This result was driven by an increase in order intake from the domestic market, which almost entirely offset the decline recorded in foreign markets.
Orders collected on the domestic market rose by 38% compared to the second quarter of 2024, reaching an absolute value of 70.9 points.In foreign markets, orders were down 7% compared to the same period of the previous year. The absolute value of the index stood at 43.8 points.In the second quarter, the order backlog reached 3.9 months of guaranteed production (up from 3.6 months in the first quarter). It is also worth noting that, on average, companies in the sector used only 55% of their production capacity in the first half of the year. Utilization is expected to reach 60% in the second half of 2025.
Source: Fibre2fashion
UK exporters—especially small firms and e-commerce sellers—face new cost pressures and operational disruption after President Donald Trump ended the long-standing US de minimis tariff exemption for low-value imports, with duties on goods under $800 set to take effect from August 29, 2025. William Bain, head of trade policy at the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said President Trump’s decision is a major blow to UK exporters to the US, particularly smaller firms and sole traders that have built their businesses around international e-commerce. The new Executive Order extends existing tariffs that previously applied only to goods from China and Hong Kong to the rest of the world. For most UK-origin goods, this will mean the existing tariff rate plus an additional 10 per cent reciprocal duty that has applied since April 2025. However, for the first six months, a transitional flat rate of $80 per item will apply to low-value packages from the UK entering the US, BCC said in a release.
Despite the policy shift, Bain maintained that opportunities remain in the US and other global markets for UK products. He called on the UK government to accelerate its trade strategy and provide targeted support to help exporters—especially SMEs and sole traders—navigate the added cost burden and operational disruption caused by the loss of the de minimis exemption.
Source: FIbre2fashion
