During the first quarter of 2018, US apparel imports were up in both value and volume terms by 1.63 per cent and 1.71 per cent respectively. However, unit prices neither decreased nor increased, which helped the US keep the balance between imported apparels and the dollars spent on them.

China lost share by 2.34 per cent in the quarter. China is still the top supplier of apparels and textiles to the US. Vietnam too lost share in the US apparel market, registering a 14.86 per cent share in overall US apparel imports in the latest quarter as against a 15.26 per cent share in the previous year.

India plunged significantly both in value (0.79 per cent) and volume (2.53 per cent) terms. Indonesia’s exports dropped 5.78 per cent and 8.26 per cent in value and volume respectively. Other top apparel suppliers were: Cambodia, South Korea, Mexico, Canada, Bangladesh and Pakistan.

During January to April 2017 apparel exports from China, Vietnam and Bangladesh constituted around 59 per cent of total apparel imports by the US. China has been slashing unit prices to stay competitive in the US and thereby convincing buyers to purchase more quantities.