India's clothing exports to the European Union (EU) have risen to 1.3 billion euro, representing an increase of 14 per cent in the first four months this year compared to the corresponding period last year.The increase is significant as there has been an 8 per cent fall in EU clothing imports from all non-EU nations.Indian exporters did less well as regards textiles. Exports for the first four months amounted to 400 million euro. This represented a decline of 6 per cent, as compared to the same period last year, but it took place at a time when EU textile imports fell by 18 per cent.On the other hand, Chinese exporters have flooded the EU market with pullovers to such an extent that nearly 50 million of these garments are now blocked in EU ports, an ‘India News in Europe’ programme said on Thursday.According to EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson, Chinese exports engulfing EU markets are displacing goods from other developing countries like Bangladesh.European importers must now look elsewhere for the ten products currently subject to quotas such as pullovers, trousers, T-shirts and women’s blouses as well as cotton fabrics, bed linen, table and kitchen linen. Indian exporters could exploit the situation, the report said.
