From January 1, 2019, the woven cotton fabric and knitted fabric imported from India to Vietnam will enjoy tax exemption under the free trade agreement between India and the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN). This will make India, a competitive supplier of such materials and machines to Vietnam. Indian businesses have invested in 201 big projects in Vietnam.

India has earned 257 million USD Dollar from selling garments and textile products to Vietnam between April and August of the current fiscal, 59 per cent up than the same period in the last fiscal. In the first nine garments and textile products months of 2018, bilateral trade hit 8.27 billion USD Dollar, up 47 per cent over the same period in 2017. Both countries target 15 billion USD Dollar in two-way trade by 2020.

In fiscal 2017-2018, India’s global exports of garments and textile were worth 36.73 billion USD Dollar, including 555 million USD Dollar to Vietnam, up 42 per cent over the previous fiscal, said Indian consul general in Ho Chi Minh City K Srikar Reddy.

Earlier this month, the Indian Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City worked with the Vietnam Cotton and Spinning Association (VCOSA) to organise a meeting between Vietnamese and Indian firms attending the 18th International Textile and Garment Industry Exhibition.

In 2017, trade between both the nations hit 7.62 billion USD Dollar, with Vietnam’s exports at 3.75 billion USD Dollar, a Vietnamese news agency reported citing data from the country’s general statistics office.

– Apparel and Textile News, Apparel Talk, Indian Apparel