The Indian government is considering removing anti-dumping duties on certain key inputs used by the textile industry, according to sources — a potential policy shift that, if implemented, would directly reduce raw material costs for garment and fabric manufacturers and sharpen India’s competitive edge in global export markets.
The move is currently at the deliberation stage, with no formal announcement made yet. However, the signal reflects a broader policy conversation that has been building within the textile ministry and the commerce department around making Indian manufacturers more cost-competitive, particularly in the context of India’s ongoing free trade agreement negotiations and the opportunity to capture market share as global buyers diversify supply chains away from China.
What anti-dumping duties do — and why their removal matters
Anti-dumping duties are imposed when imports of a product are found to be entering India at prices below their normal market value, potentially harming domestic producers of the same product. While the duties protect Indian manufacturers of those specific inputs, they simultaneously raise costs for downstream users — in this case, textile and garment makers — who depend on those inputs to produce fabrics, yarn and finished apparel.
The tension between protecting input producers and enabling downstream competitiveness has been a long-running fault line in India’s textile trade policy. The removal of anti-dumping duty on purified terephthalic acid — a key petrochemical used in polyester production — was welcomed with significant industry relief, with trade bodies noting it would help boost competitiveness globally and improve morale in the sector. Viscose staple fibre, polyester spun yarn and several dye intermediates have similarly been subjects of sustained industry lobbying for ADD relief.
The export opportunity context
India’s textile and apparel exports have been under pressure to scale up rapidly as the country positions itself to benefit from the China-plus-one supply chain reorientation by global buyers. High raw material costs — partly a function of anti-dumping duties on inputs — have been repeatedly flagged by exporters as a structural disadvantage relative to competitors in Bangladesh, Vietnam and Indonesia, which source inputs freely from global markets.
Removing anti-dumping duties on select inputs would lower the cost of production for spinning mills, fabric manufacturers and garment exporters, potentially improving order competitiveness on both price and lead-time metrics.
Who could be affected on the other side
The removal of anti-dumping duties is not without trade-offs. Domestic producers of the protected inputs — which in some cases include large petrochemical and fibre manufacturers — would face increased import competition and potential pressure on margins. Any formal notification will likely trigger industry consultations and may face pushback from input producers who have relied on the duties as a competitive buffer.
The government’s deliberations are expected to weigh the net economic impact across the full textile value chain before a final decision is taken.
This is a developing story. Business Upturn will update this article as more information becomes available.