33 Indian companies to feature at Cairo textile fair

Thirty-three Indian companies will feature at the third edition of the Indian Textiles Exhibition in Egypt (INTEXPO EGYPT) here October 1-4, an event aimed at forging a win-win partnership between the two countries "for effective forward and backward business linkages in the near future", the organisers said.

"The objective is to strengthen trade between the two countries... particularly in the fast growing area of modern textiles, a joint statement from India's Synthetic & Rayon Textiles Export Promotion Council (SRTEPC), the Indian embassy in Cairo and the Cairo Chamber of Commerce (CCC) said.

The event, to be held at the Cairo International Conference Centre "will showcase the latest range of yarn and fabrics, which will include suitings, shirtings, dress materials, and embroidered fabrics/high fashion fabrics, furnishing, home textiles, scarves, stoles, shawls and yarns of man-made fibre and their blends", the statement said.

India offers the "entire range of polyester, rayon, acrylic and blended textile items including fibre, yarn, fabrics, made-ups and home-textiles to discerning international buyers. The quality is best, prices are competitive, and delivery is on the dot. What is more, India is able to supply both high and low-end textile items - either in small or in large volumes," the statement said.

The exhibition is expected to draw "a large number of trade visitors for fruitful business discussions with the Indian exhibitors, who will be showcasing their best range of products", the statement added.

In a message on the occasion, Indian Ambassador Sanjay Bhattacharyya said: "India and Egypt enjoy friendly relations. Our trade in textiles goes back to our civilizational links. Today, we have robust economic engagement with bilateral trade reaching $5 billion. India is the second largest destination of Egyptian exports globally."

"A number of Indian companies are active in Egypt. There is significant export of yarn and fibre and import of raw cotton. There is potential for trade in textile material, machinery and other areas. I am confident that competent Indian companies will take advantage of the opportunities by presenting the latest innovations to the Egyptian market during this Exhibition to build durable and mutually beneficial partnerships," the ambassador added.

The output of the Indian textiles and clothing industry is $110 billion, of which around $ 40 billion is exported. India is the world's second largest producer of synthetic fibre & yarn, cotton, cellulosic fibre and silk. Indian man-made fibre (MMF) textiles are currently exported to more than 140 countries. The highly sophisticated and quality-conscious European Union is the largest destination for the Indian exports of MMF textiles, which account for 28 percent of the total exports, followed by North & South America, Asia (21 percent), the Middle East (20 percent) and Africa (10 percent).

India exported around $360 million worth of textiles and clothing products to Egypt during 2014-15, with MMF textiles dominating at $179 million, followed by cotton ($167 million), apparel ($9 million), Jute ($2 million) and carpets ($3 million). The main items of Indian MMF Textiles that are exported to Egypt include polyester viscose fabrics, polyester blended fabrics, synthetic filament fabrics, shawls/scarves, laces, viscose spun yarn, polyester spun yarn, texturised yarn, and polyester staple fibre.