Yet another sector is suffering from of the global economic turmoil. The export-dependent dyestuff industry is projecting nil growth this year, down from 20% in 2008, says this report.
Export orders have fallen by 50% in the last four months for this industry which ships about two-thirds of its output to the US, Europe, Northeast and Southeast Asia.
There is not much hope from the domestic market too. The $52bn Indian textile industry, one of the largest end-use sectors for dyes, has also seen orders fall especially from the US and Europe. The industry is expected to record a 5% decline in total exports this fiscal year.
A bigger worry is India losing its competitive edge to other Asian countries which offer more competitive wages.
India's apparel exports to the US dropped 11% in rupee terms during October to December last year. But apparel exports to the United States from Vietnam jumped 35% in dollar terms while those from Indonesia were up 8.44%. Even exports from Bangladesh were up 6.6%.
Comments (1)
IMO, losing the competitive edge requires solutions that go beyond providing government "sops" to industries.
Posted by Pradeep | January 22, 2009 2:01 AM
Posted on January 22, 2009 02:01