Ahmedabad’s denim exports have fallen. Till last year, when the domestic market was still crawling out of the shadow of Covid, export orders proved to be a boon for manufacturers in India’s denim capital. Denim demand was growing. However, a year down the line, the tables have completely turned, at least when it comes to the demand in the international market.Thanks to the Russia-Ukraine war, economies globally have faced many disruptions — currencies across the world have depreciated, energy costs have skyrocketed, mass layoffs have continued, and industrial production has shrunk.
As a consequence, demand has plummeted in key export markets —Turkey, the Middle East, the US, and Europe. Recession fears looming in these countries have had a direct impact on denim makers in Ahmedabad, causing export volumes to decline by an estimated 25 per cent till the second quarter. The seasonality factor, in addition to cotton price fluctuations, is also one of the key reasons for the decline in export orders.
The second quarter is typically a dry season when demand drops. Geopolitical factors, coupled with a lean season,have amplified the adverse effect on export orders. However, in the premium textilesegment, manufacturers have been able to command better prices in the export market since spending on the part of premium segment customershasn’t gone down.
