From January to September 2024, India’s apparel imports declined by 6.83 per cent to $1.09 billion, as against $1.17 billion in the same period last year, as per data from the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

Analysed by Apparel Resources, the data shows, imports of both knitted and woven apparels from Bangladesh declined by 10.43 per cent, and from China by 6.34 per cent during the period. Imports from Bangladesh declined to $455.67 million while those from China contracted to $188.16 million as buying sentiments amongst apparel businesses of India softened during the period.

Among European suppliers, imports from Italy dipped by 19.52 per cent Y-o-Y to $34.72 million whereas, imports from Spain lowered to 8.32 per cent Y-o-Y to $99.10 million.

Emerging as a strong partner, Sri Lanka’s apparel shipments increased by 13.68 per cent Y-o-Y to $50.86 million during the January to September 2024 period, indicating the growing confidence of India’s apparel buyers in Sri Lanka’s capability to meet desired quality, cost and timeline expectations.