Textile production in the US is set to get a boost due to the agreement signed with Canada and Mexico. The provisions will also strengthen customs enforcement and facilitate broader consultation and cooperation among the parties on issues related to textiles and the apparel trade.

If passed by all three countries, the agreement would supersede the North American Free Trade Agreement, which came into effect in 1994. Provisions of the new agreement would promote greater use of made-in-the-US fibers and yarns by limiting rules that allow for some inclusion of non-NAFTA inputs in the textile and apparel trade. The provisions require that sewing thread, pocketing fabric, narrow elastic bands and coated fabric, when incorporated in most apparel and other finished products, be made in the region for those finished products to qualify for trade benefits.

The agreement establishes a textiles chapter for North American trade, including textiles-specific verification and customs cooperation provisions, fostering new tools to strengthen customs enforcement for fraud and circumvention prevention in this sector. The US is the world's largest home textile market. The US market is projected to grow at CAGR of three per cent by 2020. The country’s imports of home textiles and made-ups grew at a robust 7.7 per cent during January-May 2018.