Prices that hovered around ₹250 (~$2.61) a kg in early 2026 are now reportedly touching ₹400 (~$4.18), a roughly 60 per cent increase that exporters say is putting pressure on their competitiveness.
Higher yarn prices feed into fabric and garment costs, putting pressure on margins even as they compete with producers from Bangladesh, Vietnam and elsewhere.
Cotton yarn prices in India have risen from about ₹250 a kg in early 2026 to around ₹400, pressuring apparel exporters’ fabric and garment costs.
AEPC has urged government action to regulate cotton-yarn exports of 20s count and above as flows to Bangladesh and Vietnam increase.
Tiruppur estimates production costs are up 15 per cent; raw cotton duty relief may be extended beyond October 31.
Meanwhile, provisional data cited in reports put cotton production at 29.091 million bales for 2025-26, below the 35.248 million bales recorded in 2020-21, even as the government has reportedly attributed the longer-term decline partly to farmers moving towards more remunerative crops.
The Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC) has already pushed for government intervention, including measures to regulate cotton-yarn exports. Its concern is not only that cotton yarn is getting expensive. The council has also expressed concern over increasing flows of cotton and cotton yarn to competing apparel hubs such as Bangladesh and Vietnam, partly amid tighter US scrutiny of cotton and other goods linked to Xinjiang under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act.
In a letter to Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, AEPC had urged the government to consider measures to regulate cotton-yarn exports, particularly yarn of 20s count and above, in view of the sharp increase in yarn prices and the growing pressure on the competitiveness of India’s apparel export industry.
The council also sought the intervention of Textiles Minister Giriraj Singh.
The impact is now being felt on the ground. In Tiruppur, industry representatives estimate that higher yarn prices have pushed production costs up by as much as 15 per cent.
As India’s recent trade agreements open up greater market access, apparel exporters are increasingly concerned that higher input costs could undermine those gains. The next few months will be critical, with industry stakeholders hoping the situation is contained before it erodes the gains from India’s expanding market access.
The government is also now reportedly considering extending the exemption from customs duty on raw cotton imports beyond its October 31 expiry, potentially until at least December, according to media reports citing sources.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DR)
