Addressing a symposium on emerging opportunities for Indian textiles, Textiles Secretary Ravi Capoor said domestic textile exports have plateaued during the past 5-7 years, which is a “very worrying proposition for the government”. The secretary said USD 20 billion worth of apparel space, mostly in the man-made fibre, has been vacated by China in the past three years and taken away by Vietnam. “Now is a situation where we are in a position and the (textile) minister has just spoken to Finance Minister (Nirmala Sitharaman) also this morning. Textile minister Smriti Irani was also present at the symposium. The domestic textile and apparel industry, including handicrafts, stood at USD 140 billion in 2018, of which USD 100 billion was domestically consumed, while the remaining portion worth USD 40 billion was exported to the world market.

Source: Hindustan Times February 19, 2020 14:45 UTC