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US tariff row: Russia far from being a key apparel market for India

During his recent visit to Russia, Jaishankar said, “Russia must import much more from India, including items such as textiles, pharmaceuticals, and agriculture. To address the glaring trade imbalance between the two countries, it must remove non-tariff barriers and other impediments.” At a joint press conference in Moscow, his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov added, “We reaffirmed our shared ambition to expand bilateral trade in a balanced and sustainable manner, including by increasing India’s exports to Russia.”

Latest trade data indicated that India’s garment exports to Russia did not grow but instead decreased this year. India’s garment exports to Russia fell **.** per cent to $**.*** million during January–May ****, compared with $**.*** million in the same period last year, accounting for just *.** per cent of India’s total garment exports of $*.*** billion, down from *.** per cent a year earlier. In ****, India’s garment exports to Russia stood at $***.*** million, just *.** per cent of the country’s total garment exports. This decline underscores that despite diplomatic efforts, Russian demand for Indian apparel has not translated into significant trade volumes.