International Textile

Recovery in the offing fortextile sector

After witnessing a slump in business in the wake of the global recession since October last year, the Indian textile sector is gradually showing some signs of revival. Sales volumes of small units are resurging on the back of spurt in domestic demand, and things are looking up on the export front as well. Textile SMEs which were anticipating a grim financial year following predictions of a long and deep recession by experts, can heave a sigh of relief as orders from overseas markets have started pouring in. Renewal of demand in the domestic and international markets has made small textile players hopeful of an imminent recovery and considerable improvement in the market in the current financial year. Things look up Lower off-take of textiles during the second half of 2008-09 raised concerns regarding the Indian Textiles Manufacturers and export sector. Analysts feared that the sector would slip into negative territory during the current financial year, as recessionary winds showed no signs of abating. “Last financial year proved to be tumultuous for small textile exporting units as the demand in traditional markets like the US and Europe remained weak for much of the period. However, financial crisishas eased marginally and international clients are placing orders with Indian firms for supplying them with high-quality clothes at competitive rates,” said N Maheswari, proprietor of Ambika Sythetic Mills, a Kolhapur-based small-sized textile unit. On the domestic front, the government’s efforts to infuse liquidity into the system are also expected to boost consumer demand, thereby leading to increased off-take of apparel merchandise. Rise in demand has made industry experts optimistic about the sector’s outlook in 2009-10. “Although this quarter is still reflecting a downward growth trend of 10% in exports, we are hopeful of a turnaround in this scenario from October onwards. Negative growth may persist until September and we expect to see positive growth, driven by new orders from the European markets,” commented DK Nair, Secretary General of the Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI). Though there are some positive signs, small textile units are recommended to tread cautiously in the coming months, rather than being jubilant over the revival in demand. Small textile players should look out for a more concrete indication of an upbeat trend in the textile sector before taking any strategic decisions. For more detail on Business Directory log on to http://www.bizxchange.in