A Sakthivel, Chairman, AEPC, believes, after the continuous fall in export for five months, the Indian apparel sector is on a path to V-shaped recovery. The sector witnessed a positive shift in September-October; exports rose 10.22 per cent in September this year to $1,190 million, from $1,079 million a year ago. Similarly, it rose by 6.3 per cent in October 2020 to $1,177 million from $1,107 million a year ago. The recovery from the huge fall of April this year to a 10 per cent rise in September corroborates the industry’s belief in the sector positive future growth, said Sakthivel.

COVID-19 led to a 20 per cent decline in national apparel exports while exports from Noida declined by 32 per cent. As per Lalit Thukral, President, Noida Apparel Export Cluster (NAEC), apparel exports between January and November this year declined by Rs 8,000 crore from the corresponding period last year. There was severe impact on the order position of exporters, global apparel consumption, working capital, raw material and pending refunds. Apparel exports from Noida declined to Rs 17,000 crore between January and November this year, as compared to Rs 25,000 crore last year for the same span of time, he added.

Thukral further says overseas buyers and buying houses either canceled or postponed confirmed orders indefinitely right from the first day of lockdown in India. Though the situation improved to a large extent after the union textile minister’s appeal to do “commerce with compassion”, the fresh lockdown in the UK and other European countries once again worsened the situation for exporters, he added.