The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) is conducting high-level stakeholder workshops to streamline regulatory compliance and maximize benefits from newly operationalized FTAs. In Tiruppur, India’s premier knitwear hub, manufacturers are highly bullish about doubling their export revenue from the UK and EU markets to ₹32,000 crore following the CETA implementation. Major global brands like Primark, Marks & Spencer, and Next are ramping up inquiry volumes, prompting local units to expand production capacity and adopt modern automation. The upcoming India-EU FTA and a proposed Immersion Centre in Milan are expected to further connect Indian MSMEs with European fashion houses. However, an analytical report highlights a stark contrast in India’s trade dynamics with China, pointing out a widening, asymmetric trade deficit. Despite the ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ initiative, India remains caught in an ‘assembly trap’ where nearly 92% of imports from China consist of intermediate and capital goods like telecom parts, integrated circuits, and solar components. Experts argue that overcoming this reliance requires building true domestic component ecosystems rather than relying solely on downstream assembly.