Centre nears decision on scrapping 11% cotton import duty as mills face 45 lakh bale shortfall
Government in advanced consultation to remove the 11% customs duty on raw cotton, with FY26 demand pegged at 337 lakh bales against 292.15 lakh bales of supply. Move would relieve spinning mills and apparel exporters battling rising input costs.
What happened
Indian Textile Industry · Government in advanced consultation on removing 11% import duty on raw cotton, as textile industry faces a 45 lakh bale supply-demand
Key facts
- 11% customs duty
- 337 lakh bales demand
- 292.15 lakh bales supply
- 45 lakh bales gap
Why this matters
Accelerate sourcing diversification and consider backward-integration deals with stressed mills, since duty removal will compress arbitrage windows and reshape vendor economics across India's cotton value chain.
Also reported by
- BL · Consumer & Economy — Same time