Layoffs loom over textile, chemical sectors in Gujarat

Ripples from the recession in Europe and the US continue to rock Gujarat’s textile and chemical sectors.

The clouds of job losses are looming over these labour-intensive industries.

A bad debt cycle triggered by low demand, shrinking working capital, high input costs and stretched payment cycles has forced companies to cut costs.

The textile industry prov ides direct and indirect employment to about 70 lakh people in Gujarat, while the chemical industry directly employs five lakh and provides indirect employment to sev en lakh people.

Industry experts say while more conventional units are seeing a crisis, innovative categories are doing well.

Due to a drop in demand from international markets coupled with a decline in domestic demand due to cautious discretionary spending because of inflation, the apparel and textiles industry has taken a hit.

This has had knock on effects right thr ough the textile value chain. 

Gujarat also has large clusters of dyes and intermediates manufacturers. 

The textile industry slowdown has lowered demand for dyes and chemicals.

Thei r expor t demand has also gone down with Europe’s textile industries downsizing production as gas prices spike and demand remains muted.