India takes larger share of textile market

NEW DELHI - India's share in the global textile export market has risen to 3 percent, up from 1.8 percent, over the previous 20 years and exports now stand at over US$12 billion.

Despite strong domestic demand, exports have grown to stand at over US$12 billion, about 27 percent of India's total exports, he said. The minister was addressing a gathering at the opening of a Center of Excellence at the Institute of Fashion Technology.

The domestic market for the garment industry is estimated to be worth around Rs 750,000 million (US$16.2 billion).

Meanwhile, silk prices in India have appreciated by nearly 100 percent this year following the imposition of anti-dumping duties against Chinese silk that earlier had badly hit the Indian silk industry.

"It [the anti-dumping duty] is working. After a long time, silk prices have really gone up," Central Silk Board member-secretary P Joy Oommen said.

He said the prices of bivoltine silk had appreciated to Rs 200 per kg from Rs 100 per kg last year and multivoltine silk to about Rs 120 to Rs 140 per kg from Rs 70 to Rs 80 per kg.

"Last year, both the rains had failed us and China had failed us. Earlier traders were stocking up imported silk, now the import of Chinese silk has come down," Oommen said.

India won a battle in the World Trade Organization to impose anti-dumping levies against silk from China which was sold at cheap rates that almost crippled the domestic silk industry, of which the majority is produced in Karnataka.

The import price of Chinese silk including duties is now set at $28 per kg which was sufficient protection for the domestic industry, he said. "Sentiments have gone up among both farmers and traders. Better times are back," he said.

(Asia Pulse/PTI)