India earned nearly US$ 15 billion through exports of textiles and apparel in the first six months of the current financial year 2013-14, according to the latest data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
According to the data, India exported US$ 14.935 billion worth of textiles and garments during the first half of the current fiscal year, with the readymade garments accounting for US$ 7.074 billion of the same.
Cotton yarn, fabrics, made-ups, etc. contributed US$ 4.236 billion to the nation’s foreign exchange, while man-made yarn, fabrics, made-ups, etc. fetched US$ 2.431 billion during the six-month period.
Natural silk yarn, fabrics, made-ups, etc. accounted for US$ 79.3 million, whereas woolen yarn, fabrics, made-ups, etc. brought US$ 51.8 million.
Hand-made carpets, jute & jute goods, and coir & coir item exports from India were worth US$ 507.5 million, US$ 181.8 million, and US$ 100.5 million, respectively.
India also exported man-made staple fibres valued at US$ 272 million during April-September 2013 period.
During the same period, India’s textile yarn and fabric imports stood at US$ 2.05 billion, the RBI data showed.
In full year 2012-13, India’s total textiles and clothing exports were worth US$ 27.363 billion, with the readymade garments sector contributing US$ 12.928 billion.
Textiles and garments accounted for around nine percent of India’s overall export earnings of US$ 300 billion during 2012-13.
