With the election of Trump as the US President, a Pandora’s box of surprises has opened up. Things which were unheard and even inconceivable have happened. The world is in a state of shock – perhaps what President Trump wanted – tariffs and turmoil!
However much may be the turmoil, for the optimist there is always a silver lining. For India, it is time to quickly wake up, put the house in order and make the most of the opportunity to reclaim the grounds which we have been losing over the last 15-20 years as one of the market leaders in textiles. Global textile industry contributed to US$ 592.8 billion in textile exports in 2024, with China leading the way with US$ 286 billion, followed by Bangladesh at US$ 46.2 billion, Vietnam US$ 43.7 billion, India US$ 41.4 billion and Germany US$ 40.4 billion. This is followed by Turkey, Italy, US, Spain and Pakistan. This list is of the top 10 textile manufacturing countries.
Quick look back to 2010, China was still the leader, followed by India, then Vietnam and Bangladesh and Indonesia. In the last 20 years or so, we have lost a lot of ground and are continuing to slide back. Textiles are produced with three major raw materials. Cotton, which we all understand in India, man-made fiber, -a derivative of petroleum and viscose which is made of wood pulp, specifically derived from trees like beech, pine eucalyptus and bamboo.