FIEO seeks raw cotton export ban
Mr A Sakthivel, president of the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) has appealed to the government to immediately suspend raw cotton exports until at least the end of the year. He claims the move would be in the best interest of the textile, apparel and associated industries.
He explained that the raw material accounts for more than 60% of the country’s total fibre production and that textile firms need to be able to access cotton at competitive rates if they are to compete with countries such as China, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Vietnam. He added that the textile sector is the country’s second biggest employer after agriculture and that garment and textile exports have fallen dramatically in recent months.
Mr Sakthivel pointed out that while raw cotton exports yield approximately Rs 65/kg ($1.40/kg), exports of ready-made garments fetch around Rs 450/kg on average, a value addition of 700%.
