Apparel exports saw a positive growth of 10.22 per cent for September 2020 (US $ 1,190 million) vis-à-vis US $ 1,079 million in September 2019.
The double-digit growth in apparel exports in September indicates that the sector has begun its V-shaped recovery and is going to get better; at least that’s what Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC) believes so.
Dr. A. Sakthivel, Chairman, AEPC, said in a press release, “Apparel exports increased for the first time this fiscal in September. The steep recovery from 90 per cent fall in April to 10 per cent rise last month corroborates our belief that the apparel sector is already on the path of V-shaped recovery.”
AEPC believes that this turnaround with a positive growth of more than 10 per cent will only increase as we go forward in the second half of the fiscal. “The negative growth trend has been arrested after several months and a lot of lost ground will be captured in H2. Apparel exporters are walking through positive growth,” Dr. Sakthivel said.
He also said that it’s all possible because of the positive steps taken by the Government of India especially the Ministries of Textiles, Commerce, MSME and Finance.
“Pro-active Government with dynamic ministers and supporting policies, our foray into medical textiles and positive sentiment towards India are making the revival strong,” he added.
It is also pertinent to mention here that many Indian apparel exporters are currently using 50 to 60 per cent of their capacity and they feel strongly that their overall business will be 20 to 30 per cent down in the current fiscal.
The rating agency ICRA has also said that apparel exporters’ turnover may dip 25 per cent in FY21.
“The apparel exporting industry has risen like a phoenix from the deep crisis because of the hard-working and ingenious apparel exporters, who must be complimented for their agility and enterprise for protecting both industry and jobs,” Dr. Sakthivel said.
