Business Standard, India
India’s textile exports may have gained by $2 billion following the lifting of quotas fromJanuary 1, 2005, but have lost market share in cotton trousers and many female workerscould lose their jobs, according to a UNDP report on ‘Trade on Human Terms’.“India has lost market share in cotton trousers, but gained in cotton fibre dresses andmen’s cotton-knit shirts. Although no job losses have been reported yet, many femaleworkers are expected to lose their jobs when the textile industry replaces handlooms bymachine looms,” the report said.According to the report, which has analysed the impact of the lifting of quotas (withinAsian exporters), the biggest gains have been experienced by China and India.In the United States and the European Union, China’s textile exports increased from 20per cent to 27 per cent, while that of India went up from around 5 per cent to over 6 percent.The initial losers in terms of decline in value of exports to both US and EU are Nepal,Philippines, Thailand and Pakistan.The report states that in the long term, China, like other industrialising countries, is likelyto shift from manufacture of relatively simple goods like textiles and clothing and laymore emphasis on high-tech industrial products such as electronics.In value terms, India’s share in the US market in textiles and clothing increased from 4.6per cent in 2004 to 5.4 per cent in 2005, while its share in the EU market increased from6.8 per cent in 2004 to 7.5 per cent in 2005.China’s share in textiles and clothing in value terms increased in the US from 17.2 percent to 24.2 per cent in 2005 while its share in the EU market increased from 23 per centin 2004 to 30.7 per cent in 2005.The share of Bangladesh in the US market increased marginally to 2.6 per cent in 2005from 2.3 the previous year while its share in the EU has fallen to 5 per cent in 2005 from5.6 per cent in 2004.Pakistan’s share in the EU has also fallen marginally to 3 per cent in 2005 from 3.6 percent in 2004 while its share in the US has improved marginally to 3.1 per cent from 2.9per cent in 2004.Sri Lanka’s share has remained largely unchanged at 1.8 per cent for the US and 1.1per cent in EU in 2005 from 1.3 per cent in 2004.
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