India’s textile and apparel industry warns that new US legislation linking tariffs on Russian energy buyers could severely impact exports, urging New Delhi to swiftly negotiate safeguards as the sector faces mounting pressures and mixed export signals.
India’s textile and apparel industry has warned that a new US sanctions law could squeeze exports to its most important overseas market, after Washington approved legislation that opens the door to steep tariffs on major buyers of Russian energy. The Confederation of Indian Textile Industry said the risk comes at a time when the sector is already under pressure, and urged New Delhi to engage with the US quickly to protect exporters.
According to Business Standard and LiveMint, the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 authorises tariffs of up to 100% on major purchasers of Russian oil and gas, including India. The reports said the measure was signed into law by US President Donald Trump after advancing through Congress, part of a broader effort to increase economic pressure on Russia over the war in Ukraine.
CITI chairman Ashwin Chandran said the impact on India’s largely small and medium-sized exporter base could be severe. He said any fresh tariff burden would be difficult to absorb and would hurt the country’s ability to sell into the US, which he described as Indian textile and apparel exporters’ biggest market by a wide margin. Chandran also called for a fair and predictable bilateral trade arrangement, noting that India and the US have been discussing such a deal for some time.
The group said free trade agreements may eventually open other markets, but not quickly enough to offset a shock to US demand. That concern comes against a mixed export backdrop: ANI reported that India’s overall textile and apparel exports rose 6.39% in dollar terms in August from a year earlier, helped by a 13.03% increase in textile shipments, while apparel exports fell 2.74%. For April to August, textile exports rose 6.94%, apparel exports dropped 9.10%, and combined exports were down 0.24% year on year.
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