Italy is a major apparels importer globally but India holds a miniscule share in these imports. Apparel is the largest category with a share of 46 per cent in India’s textile and apparel exports to Italy. This is followed by cotton textiles and manmade textiles having a share of 20 per cent and 18 per cent respectively.

Apparel is the largest imported category by Italy, making up 61 per cent of total textile and apparel imports. This is followed by manmade textiles with a share of 17 per cent. The top 10 suppliers account for 71 per cent of textile and apparel imports by Italy. China and Hong Kong are the largest suppliers accounting for 21 per cent share, followed by Germany with eight per cent and Spain and France seven per cent each.

In recent years, China, the largest supplier for Italy, has seen a sustained rise in its wages, opening up opportunities for India to increase its share in Italy’s apparel imports. Apart from this, manmade textiles category offers huge potential for India to increase its market share in Italy. It can increase its export competitiveness by investing in manmade fiber-based textile manufacturing processes, thereby increasing its market base.