Apparel made up the bulk of textiles and garments imported by the US in January-June 2022, and were valued at $49.578 billion, while non-apparel imports accounted for $16.729 billion, according to the latest Major Shippers Report, released by the US department of commerce.Segment-wise, among the top 10 apparel suppliers to the US, imports from Bangladesh and Indonesia shot up by 60.30 per cent and 60.27 per cent year-on-year respectively. Imports from India and Cambodia too grew 57.27 per cent and 52.52 per cent respectively. Additionally, imports from Pakistan, which is among the top 10 suppliers, registered a growth of 49.99 per cent compared to the same period of the previous year.
In the non-apparel category, among the top 10 suppliers, imports from Cambodia soared by 73.09 per cent year-on-year. Imports from Vietnam and Italy climbed 29.02 per cent and 27.54 per cent respectively. On the other hand, imports from Turkey dipped by 8 per cent.Of the total US textile and apparel imports of $66.308 billion during the period under review, cotton products were worth $29.541 billion, while man-made fibre products accounted for $33.396 billion, followed by $1648.531 million of wool products, and $1721.557 million of products from silk and vegetable fibres.In 2020, US textile and apparel imports had decreased sharply, mainly on account of pandemic-induced disruption, to $89.596 billion compared to imports of $111.033 billion in 2019. But imports rebounded again in 2021 to surpass the pre-pandemic level and ended at $113.938 billion.The latest import figures indicate that US economy is witnessing a fast recovery, and the world’s largest economy is continuing to support economic recovery in developing countries.
