USD 2119 million during 2024-25, mainly due to the tariff disadvantage. Dr. Sundararaman, chairman of SIMA, has said that in the total UK exports of textiles, ready-made garments of all textiles account for around 70%, and cotton yarn/fabrics/made-ups, handloom products, etc., account for around 15%.
He has stated that under the new FTA, the 10% to 12% tariff levied by the UK on Indian shirts, trousers, women’s dresses, and bedlinen and the 4% to 8% tariff levied on yarns and fabrics would become zero.
Dr. Sundararaman has stated that the India-UK FTA has given a new sigh of relief when the Indian textile industry is struggling with the slowdown in US exports due to the steep increase and uncertainties of US reciprocal tariff rates.
He has said that the exports of home textiles, especially the kitchen linen from clusters like Karur, had been struggling with the tariff disadvantage when compared with countries like Pakistan, and the sector would now soon be able to double its exports to the UK.
He has added that with the UK being the second-largest market for ready-made garments, the zero-duty access would bring huge investments across the value chain and make all seven PM MITRA Parks, the PLI scheme, the technical textile NTTM scheme, and all other state and central government textile industry-related schemes a grand success.
He has stated the country would be able to utilize 20 to 30 percent surplus production capacities in the entire textile value chain and grab the export opportunities thrown out by the India-UK FTA in a short span of time.