KOCHI: India's coir exports declined by about 13 per cent in terms of value during March to Rs 45.03 crore mainly on account of lower interests from the major importing country - the US - which is hit by recession.
Coir exports during March 2008 stood at Rs 51.68 crore, according to Coir Board data. In terms of volume, it dipped by nearly 2 per cent to 15,618 tonnes compared to 15,868 tonnes in the same month last year.
“The exports got affected by many orders put on hold from the US and many European countries, which are hit by major economic turmoil,” a Coir Board official said. During March, coir fibre export jumped by around five fold to Rs 1.85 crore from just Rs 3 9 lakh in the year-ago period due to surge in demand from Chinese mat industries.
Coir pith saw a rise of 11 per cent at Rs 63.2 crore from Rs 56.95 crore last year. The rise in demand for coir pith, used as a manure to increase the fertility of the soil, was mainly from countries like the Netherlands and a few other European nations, he said.
During entire 2008-09 fiscal, coir export has recorded a growth of 5.22 per cent to Rs 623 crore compared to Rs 592 crore in the previous fiscal.
Source : Business Line