US textile & apparel imports dip 2.55% in Jan-March

The US imported $8.672 billion worth of textiles and garments from China, which accounted for 38.23 per cent share of all textile and garment imports made by the US in January-March 2016, the data showed.

Vietnam, India, Bangladesh and Indonesia were among the top five suppliers of textiles and garments to the US, with goods valued at $2.726 billion, $1.971 billion, $1.509 billion and $1.312 billion, respectively, during the three-month period.

Segment-wise, the US apparel imports during the first quarter of 2016 were valued at $19.301 billion, whereas non-apparel imports accounted for $5.969 billion.

Among the top ten apparel suppliers to the US, exports from Vietnam increased at 5.73 per cent year-on-year, while those from Bangladesh and India rose at 4.30 per cent each. On the other hand, China's exports to the US fell 5.94 per cent to $6.090 billion during the period under review. On the other hand, Honduras, Cambodia and Mexico saw their exports decline by 8.73 per cent, 8.41 per cent and 7.58 per cent, respectively, over the corresponding period of 2015.

In the non-apparel category, among the top ten suppliers, the import from Turkey and India shot up by 13.82 per cent year-on-year and 3.44 per cent respectively to $203.926 million and $894.567 million. While imports from China, Taiwan and Italy dropped by 10.35 per cent, 10.13 per cent and 8.08 per cent to $2.581 billion, $102.478 million and $133.675 million respectively.

Of the total US textile and apparel imports of $25.270 billion during the first quarter, cotton products were worth $11.601 billion, while man-made fibre products accounted for $12.257 billion, followed by $731.176 million of wool products and $681.045 million of products from silk and vegetable fibres.

In 2015, the US textile and apparel imports increased by 4.15 per cent year-on-year to $111.928 billion, with apparel alone accounting for $85.164 billion. (RKS)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India