How US tariffs are unraveling India's textile industry

"On the floor of a Ludhiana spinning mill, 29-year-old Pankaj Kumar stands at his station, his fingers a blur as he knots loose threads and feeds them onto a spinning wheel. The yarn will soon make its way to the city's textile factories, which produce woollen knitwear, hosiery, and other garments, much of it destined for the United States. Kumar has worked in different spinneries for nearly a decade, but for the past four months, this one has been his livelihood, bringing in 18,000 rupees ($203.87) a month."

"Rajesh Kumar, who manages the unit, told Al Jazeera that orders for yarn have plunged by nearly 30 percent in just two weeks since the US rolled out a sweeping 50 percent tariff on Indian goods a two-tiered levy which took full effect on August 27. Of that, the first 25 percent kicked in on August 7 and was later doubled as punishment for India's imports of Russian oil."

"India has denounced the tariff hike as unfair and unjustified. But the shock is already rippling through textile units across the country. The sector contributes about 2.3 percent to India's gross domestic product (GDP), 13 percent to industrial production, and 12 percent to total exports. It is also the second-largest employer after agriculture, providing direct work to more than 45 million people, many of them women and members of the rural workforce."

A Ludhiana spinning mill supplies yarn to local factories producing woollen knitwear, hosiery and other garments largely destined for the United States. A worker earned 18,000 rupees monthly but faces uncertain employment after US tariffs rose to 50 percent. The tariffs were applied in two stages, starting with 25 percent on August 7 and doubling to 50 percent on August 27 as punishment for India's imports of Russian oil. Orders for yarn plunged nearly 30 percent in two weeks, disrupting production planning and risking widespread job losses. The textile sector contributes to GDP, industrial output and exports, and directly employs over 45 million people.

Read at www.aljazeera.com