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Anil Sasi

New Delhi , Sept. 21

INDIA has emerged as the top supplier in major product categories in the `cut-throat' US home textiles market, leaving erstwhile leaders such as China, Portugal, Brazil and Turkey to bite the dust.

Quota restrictions notwithstanding, Indian exporters have emerged as the biggest players in major product categories such as terry towels, cotton sheets and pillowcases and are inching up to the top slot in the table linen, curtain, cushion cover and the cotton bed spread and quilt market, according to US Department of Commerce data.

For instance, in the pillowcases and cotton sheets product categories (Categories 360 and 361), India is way above the rest, with exports to the US market registering a growth of over 200 per cent over the last three years. Indian suppliers have beaten off competition from Portugal and China to capture a combined market share of close to 20 per cent in the two product categories during 2003.

In the terry towels category (Category 363) too, India has consolidated its leadership position and has captured a market share of around 19 per cent. During the last three years, India's growth rate in the segment has been around 55 per cent, according to the data.

Besides these categories, Indian products are second only to Chinese items in Category 369, which includes bags, table linen, napkins and curtains. Also, in the case of products such as cotton bedspreads and quilts (Category 362) Indian suppliers are clearly making up, ranked third, with the market leader being China.

"The strides made by Indian suppliers in the US home textile market in nothing short of a remarkable achievement. Indian suppliers have shown specialisation in case of fine-count made-up items and a host of other segments," the Vice-Chairman, Texprocil, Mr Prem Malik, said.

According to Mr Malik, with quotas on their way out from January 1, Indian suppliers are expected to consolidate their position in the US home textiles market even further.

More Stories on : Textiles | Exports & Imports | Knitwear & Hosiery

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