"India has long been one of the world's great garment houses, turning out everything from cheap T-shirts to intricate embroidery. Last year, textile and garment exports to the US alone fetched 21bn, riding a wave of strong consumer demand. Now the trade is in jeopardy. With the stroke of a pen, the US president, Donald Trump, last week slapped a 50% tariff on more than half of India's 65bn worth of merchandise exports to the country's largest market."
"Christopher Wood, the global head of equity strategy at the investment bank Jefferies, puts the economic blow at 41bn-45bn, singling out textiles, footwear, jewellery and gems, all of which are highly labour-intensive, as the most negatively impacted. The pain is visible in Tirupur, Tamil Nadu's booming textile hub. We're scared of losing our jobs. Many of us borrowed money to come here. If the factories cut workers, we will have nothing, Harihar Pradhan, a 32-year-old migrant worker from Odisha told the Times of India."
"Tirupur's half a million workers churn out cotton T-shirts, tracksuits and undergarments. They are shipped worldwide, but Americans have always been the biggest customers. Factories in Tirupur, as well as Noida in Uttar Pradesh, near Delhi, and Gujarat, are already shuttering production lines, according to the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO). Fashion's unseen stories: the homeworkers of Tirupur in pictures Alongside textiles,"
US tariffs of 50% now apply to more than half of India's 65bn of merchandise exports to the US, sharply raising costs for exporters. Effective rates rise further after folding in exemptions and existing duties, for example to 62% for ready-made garments (up from 12%) and 60% for shrimp. Economists estimate the economic blow at 41bn–45bn, with textiles, footwear, jewellery, gems and seafood most affected. Factories in Tirupur, Noida and Gujarat are shuttering production lines, threatening millions of jobs and squeezing margins. Competitors in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Vietnam and South Korea face much lower tariffs (15–20%), widening India's competitive disadvantage.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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