Garment exports from Tirupur show 19% rise in Q1

Exports from Tirupur, the knitwear hub of the country, have shown about 19% rise in the first quarter ended June,2013. The region in Tamil Nadu, which accounts for 42 % of the total knitwear exports from the country, shipped Rs 4,100 crore worth of materials in the first three months. In the same period in the previous year, exports touched Rs 3450 crore.

A Sakthivel, president of Tirupur Exporters Associations said the prospects look better in the current year with demand picking up in the chief consuming regions of the US and Europe. Exports from Tirupur have not shown much growth in the last three years with slack demand.

Exports stood at Rs 13,000 crore in 2012-13, growing by 8% from the previous year. But this year the exporters are expecting double digit growth. We may achieve 10 to 12 % increase in exports in the current year,'' Sakthivel said.

He welcomed the Centres' decision to increase the rupee export credit interest rate subvention from 2 to 3% from August 1 and to clear all pending claims.

According to him, the decision has come at the right time when the knitwear units in Tirupur are trying to reduce the production cost to raise the competitiveness in the global market.