Overall, India’s textile and apparel exports climbed to $3.119 billion and posted a robust 6.39% year-on-year expansion in August 2026, with a marked upswing in textile consignments comfortably outweighing a dip in clothing shipments.
According to figures compiled by the Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI), textile overseas shipments totalled $1.918 billion in August, against $1.697 billion a year prior, surging by 13.03%.
Whereas apparel exports slipped 2.74% easing to $1.201 billion, down from $1.235 billion in the equivalent month last year.
Exports of cotton yarn, fabrics, made-ups and handloom goods climbed 13.79% year-on-year to touch $1,121 million in August.
Man-made yarn, fabrics and made-ups shipments grew 9.92% to reach $446 million in the month under review.
Conversely, jute exports, including floor coverings, slid 19.39% to $27 million, whilst rug and carpet shipments edged up 5.38 % to $125 million.
The standout performer was handicrafts, excluding hand-knotted carpets, which leapt 29.6% to hit $197.29 million, outpacing every other category in August.
India’s combined textile and apparel overseas shipments for the April–August stretch of fiscal 26/27 slipped marginally by 0.24% year-on-year, totalling $15.077 billion against $15.114 billion logged in the same comparable period of a year earlier.
Within this, garment exports contracted 9.10% to $6.150 billion, while textile exports expanded 6.94% to $8.928 billion, underlining the divergent fortunes of the two sub-sectors over the five-month span.
Image courtesy: Vecstock by Freepik

