Riches-To-Rags Tale

It is not just appreciating rupee that is playing spoilsport with the Indian textile industry. Asian rivals like Vietnam, China, Pakistan and Indonesia are also providing stiff competition on price front for exports to the European Union and the US. While, India's share in US imports of clothing has risen marginally from 3.2 per cent in 1995 to 4.3 per cent in 2007. This is an insignificant increase when compared to that of Indonesia, or Vietnam which has increased by over 4 per cent. According to FICCI, India's exports to EU grew by 18.6 per cent in 2005, declined to 14.9 per cent in 2006 and to 12.6 per cent in 2007.

This article was originally published on July 22, 2008.