Brexit did send shock waves to the entire world. However, it will only happen when the UK government triggers Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty and formally begins its withdrawal from the EU. As per Article 50, UK has to enter into fresh negotiations with member states about the terms of its departure. This process can take up to two years with the possibility of an extension to a longer negotiation period. With no clear timeline set, Brexit cannot be a possibility for at least in the coming two years.
UK, being a developed country and a major consumption center, imports variety of textile and apparel products from the world. Its textile and apparel imports in 2015 stood at $35 billion. That has grown at a CAGR of 1.2 per cent from $33 billion in 2010. The textile and apparel export is also predominant in total merchandise exports of India to UK vis-à-vis EU. Textile and apparel exports accounted for more than one fourth of the merchandise exports to UK while it has share of 21 per cent in the total exports to EU during 2015-16. In short, Brexit will have negative implications on UK’s textile and apparel imports due to devaluation of the Pound.
