After nearly 2 years, India’s textile hub Tirupur, has witnessed a resurgence of bulk orders from the US and the UK amid political unrest in Bangladesh. The city’s 5,000 garment export businesses are operating at full throttle, with their facilities running at 95 per cent capacity.
K M Subramanian, president of the Tirupur Exporters Association (TEA), said that new UK clothing importers are seeking samples ahead of the anticipated Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and the UK. The Union Commerce Ministry confirmed that FTA negotiations will resume in the new year.
For the upcoming spring season, the US has placed orders for units that were previously operating at 60-65 per cent capacity just a few months ago, Subramanian noted, adding that this has now changed. He also mentioned that some U.S. companies are shifting from sourcing from Bangladesh to Indian vendors.
Tirupur generated Rs 35,000 crore (US $ 4.14 billion) in revenue for FY ’24, with expectations to increase to Rs 40,000 crore (US $ 4.74 billion) in FY ’25, Subramanian stated. According to the commerce ministry, India’s garment exports rose 35 per cent in October, reaching US $ 1.22 billion, up from US $ 908.78 million in the same month last year.
