How much did US apparel imports from India fall in 2026?

By 26.44 percent by value and 24.91 percent by volume in January to August 2026 against the same months of 2025, according to OTEXA figures reported by The Business Standard of Dhaka on 7 October 2026. Total US apparel imports fell 7.42 percent over the same period.

Is the US tariff on India higher than on Bangladesh?

Not under the Section 301 forced labour action in force since 24 July 2026: both are in the 10 percent band. India carried a 50 percent headline rate from August 2025 until the added 25 percent was removed on 7 February 2026, and that is the more likely cause of the gap in 2026 shipments.

Does falling garment demand mean Indian fabric prices will drop?

Not on the 2026 evidence. The fabric stage has run well above the garment stage in official output data, brokerage notes describe full weaving order books, and cotton and crude were both rising in late October 2026. Price fabric on the fabric chain. Our quotes are price on request.

Export markets

US Garment Imports From India Fell a Quarter in 2026. Why That Does Not Make Indian Fabric Cheaper

US government import data for January to August 2026 shows apparel from India down 26.44 percent by value and 24.91 percent by volume, against a 7.42 percent fall for the US market and 4.43 percent for Bangladesh. A buyer may read that as Indian mills running short of work and ready to discount. The fabric side of the chain says otherwise.

A folded white formal shirt beside a bolt of the same white shirting, with tailor's shears and chalk on an oak table

Jump to section

What the figures say
Why India fell further than rivals on the same tariff
What it does not mean for a fabric quote
What a buyer should do with this
Frequently asked questions

What the figures say

US apparel imports from India fell 26.44 percent by value and 24.91 percent by volume in January to August 2026, against the same months of 2025. Those figures come from the US Office of Textiles and Apparel (OTEXA), as reported by The Business Standard of Dhaka on 7 October 2026. The OTEXA site itself would not load for us, so we are quoting the report, not the database.

The comparison is what makes the number matter. Total US apparel imports fell 7.42 percent over the same months, so the whole market shrank, but India fell more than three times as fast. Imports from China fell 29.39 percent, Bangladesh 4.43 percent, Pakistan 3.83 percent and Vietnam 0.76 percent, while Cambodia rose 6.91 percent and Indonesia 2.58 percent.

The same report gives unit values. The average unit price of US apparel imports rose 1.71 percent, while the average unit price of apparel from India fell 2.04 percent. Indian garment makers shipped less and, on average, at slightly lower prices.

Why India fell further than rivals on the same tariff

India and Bangladesh sit in the same 10 percent band under the US Section 301 forced labour action in force since 24 July 2026, set out in our post on that tariff. So the gap is not explained by the rate in force today.

Our reading, not the report's, is that the comparison period does most of the work. In August 2025 Indian goods picked up a 50 percent headline US tariff, half of it a penalty specific to India, and the added 25 percent was only removed on 7 February 2026. Garment orders for early 2026 shipments were being placed while that rate stood, and a US buyer moving a line out of India in late 2025 does not move it back the week the rate falls. Rivals carried no such penalty, so they had no orders to lose.

Bangladeshi industry figures quoted in the same report add two other reasons a buyer weighs: lead times and raw material availability. Those cut both ways for India, which is the point of the next section.

What it does not mean for a fabric quote

A buyer who reads that Indian garment exports to the US fell a quarter may assume Indian fabric mills are short of work and will discount. These are garment figures, not fabric figures, and the two halves of the Indian chain have not moved together this year. We set out the split in the looms are busy and the sewing floor is not: official output data shows the textile stage running well above its base while apparel sits below it.

Weaving order books have also been described as full rather than empty. Brokerage notes in October reported stronger order books and higher utilisation across the sector, covered in our post on the textile stocks rally. Fabric made in India goes to domestic garment makers, institutional uniform buyers and export markets other than the US, so one market's garment orders falling does not free up a loom.

Input costs point the same way. Cotton has been rising since the new season opened, as covered in our cotton post, and crude, which feeds polyester, was above 110 dollars a barrel in late October. A lower Indian garment price into the US says Indian garment makers are cutting margin to hold orders. It does not say their cloth got cheaper.

What a buyer should do with this

If you buy garments made in India for the US market, the figures say your supplier's order book is thinner than a year ago, which can mean faster sampling and readier capacity on the sewing floor. Ask about it.

If you buy fabric, price it on the fabric chain, not the garment one. Ask for a quote with a stated validity date, and expect cotton-rich cloth to carry shorter validity than poly-viscose while cotton is moving. Our quotes are price on request.

We will update this post when OTEXA figures through September are reported.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

How much did US apparel imports from India fall in 2026?: By 26.44 percent by value and 24.91 percent by volume in January to August 2026 against the same months of 2025, according to OTEXA figures reported by The Business Standard of Dhaka on 7 October 2026. Total US apparel imports fell 7.42 percent over the same period.
Is the US tariff on India higher than on Bangladesh?: Not under the Section 301 forced labour action in force since 24 July 2026: both are in the 10 percent band. India carried a 50 percent headline rate from August 2025 until the added 25 percent was removed on 7 February 2026, and that is the more likely cause of the gap in 2026 shipments.
Does falling garment demand mean Indian fabric prices will drop?: Not on the 2026 evidence. The fabric stage has run well above the garment stage in official output data, brokerage notes describe full weaving order books, and cotton and crude were both rising in late October 2026. Price fabric on the fabric chain. Our quotes are price on request.

Sources

Primary documents

The government and inter-governmental documents behind the dates and figures above, so you can read them yourself. Anything attributed to trade press or to a research note is named in the copy rather than linked here.

1. USTR, Notice of Actions in Section 301 Investigations, 91 FR 47318, 28 July 2026 (the 10 percent band for India and Bangladesh)

Cite this post

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<a href="https://www.bennycotts.com/blog/us-apparel-imports-from-india-fall-2026-fabric-buyers">US Garment Imports From India Fell a Quarter in 2026. Why That Does Not Make Indian Fabric Cheaper</a>, Benny Cotts, 2026

Updated 24 October 2026 · Benny Cotts, Bhilwara

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