India
Export orders
for food, handicraft and readymade garments have risen at least 15% year-on-year
owing to the upcoming festival season. According to traders, there is a higher
demand for Indian sweets and snacks during Diwali in the United States. The
overall snacks, sweets and confectionaries segment has seen a 4-5% increase in
export orders, they said.
India’s
merchandise exports in the April-September period amounted to $197.89 billion.
Exporters said most of the demand is coming from the US, where Covid-19 cases
have declined and economic activity is picking up faster than in the UK and the
European Union.
However, much of
the increase in export orders can be attributed to pent-up demand, according to
exporters. Since stocks were low earlier, even a slight movement in demand
looks like a huge jump, they said.
However, an
increase in ocean freight and manufacturing costs due to higher energy and
metal prices has squeezed profit margins, said exporters. A Sakthivel,
Chairman, Apparel
Export Promotion Council, said that, the US is doing better than the
UK and EU and there is a 15-20% rise in orders especially from mid-fashion
brands than the high-fashion ones. The US banning the entry of all products
using cotton from China’s Xinjiang region and high prices of raw material there
due to power crisis have made buyers turn to India, said exporters.
Source:
The Economic Times
Image Source: Google Images
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