Apparel exporters warn of job losses amid US tariff uncertainty

Pune: India's apparel exporters warned of factory closures and job losses as uncertainty over high US tariffs is leading buyers to defer or cancel orders.

The Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC) said buyers are unwilling to risk mid-season tariff changes, per a letter sent to vice-president CP Radhakrishnan.

The industry body wants the government to swifty conclude a tariff deal with the US or provide interim relief, warning that even a 3-6-month delay could cause permanent harm to the sector. Recent US actions imposing 25% tariffs and an additional 25% oil-related penalty on imports are severely hindering India's textile exports, especially to the US, the former's single largest export market. "To retain US customers and maintain production continuity, exporters have absorbed 25% price reduction equivalent to oil penalty," said A Sakthivel, chairman, AEPC. "This has resulted in profits getting wiped out and reserves being depleted." The US accounts for nearly a third of India's textile exports, valued at about $11 billion, according to the Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI). "With threat of additional or prolonged tariffs, the US buyers are withholding or cancelling new orders as they are unwilling to risk mid-cycle tariff escalation," said Sakthivel.