Indian Textile Mills Looking Up Again

Economy

Indian Textile Mills Looking Up Again

Indian textile mills reported a sharp swing in their fortunes after cotton prices stabilized to levels lower than that prevailing in the international markets. The textile mills have registered a marked improvement in their bottom lines ever since. A massive USD 884 million surge in exports compared year-on-year was witnessed in the export of cotton yarn, fabric, made-ups and handlooms. In all the boost registered stands at 18%. Backing the estimates made by industry insiders, P Nataraj, Chairman Southern India Mills’ Association (SIMA) said, “The yarn market has gained momentum in recent times and the unsold yarn stock level is one of the lowest in the recent years.The demand for coarse and medium counts, especially open-end yarn, both in the domestic market and export market has increased considerably and several mills have got advance booking for few months.” Secretary General SIMA, K Selvaraju seconded the opinion stating to the media, “Taking advantage of increased fabric demand, yarn prices have increased during the middle of May when compared to the previous month. Prices of the 30s and 40s count hosiery yarn have increased by Rs 5 per kg on an average in the middle of May. Similarly, yarn used for weaving has seen a price increase of Rs 3-7 per kg. Some mills are booked up to June for fast moving yarn counts.” According to industry sources, “Cotton prices have been reigned in lower than the prices maintained at the international market. This has given the mills the much required impetus, more so in the export market. Prices of Shankar-6, the popular cotton variety used by mills, are ruling at around Rs 43,000 per candy (a candy is about 355 kgs). The landed cost for imported cotton of a similar variety works out to Rs 48,000-50,000 per candy.”