Fashion
UK trade weathers tariff shocks with agility and new deals: BCC
The second quarter of 2025 saw UK goods exports to the US fall 13 per cent year-on-year (YoY), hit by record-high tariffs and the removal of the $800 de minimis threshold, which even paused postal deliveries.
Despite this, UK firms remain resilient, as highlighted at the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC)’s Global Annual Conference session on Global Trade, chaired by Chris Heyes of the UK-India Business Council.
Speakers including Robert Begbie – CEO NatWest Commercial and Institutional, Gregor Poynton – Labour MP for Livingston and member of the House of Commons Business and Trade Select Committee, Jun Du – Professor of Economics at Aston University, and William Bain – BCC Head of Trade Policy, stressed that UK companies are adapting through agility and diversification.
Goods exports remain focused on the EU, the UK’s largest market, while Indo-Pacific ties are expanding rapidly, BCC said in a release.
The India-UK CETA, due in about a year, will slash over 90 per cent of India’s import duties, adding £4.8 billion (~$5.61 billion) to the UK economy and directly boosting exports. Membership of the CPTPP also unlocks growth from £31 billion in current goods exports to the bloc, while trade missions reinforce China’s role as a vital market.
Though 2025 has been turbulent, UK exporters are urged to diversify markets, seize new trade deals, and leverage services strength to turn uncertainty into opportunity.
UK exports to the US fell 13 per cent in Q2 2025 amid record tariffs and loss of the de minimis threshold.
Yet, UK firms remain resilient.
The upcoming India-UK CETA and CPTPP membership promise fresh opportunities.
Experts at the BCC conference urged exporters to adopt market diversification and leverage services strengths to navigate global trade headwinds.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (HU)
Published
October 24, 2025
Global athletic brand New Balance has expanded its brick-and-mortar network in India and opened a mono-brand outlet in Gujarat at shopping centre VR Surat. The launch was marked by an in-store showcase event.
“We are thrilled to bring New Balance to Surat- a city known for its energy, ambition, and growing fitness culture,” said New Balance India’s country manager Radeshwer Davar in a press release. “This opening reinforces our commitment to expanding our footprint across India and connecting with local communities through sport and lifestyle. We welcome Surat’s vibrant community to experience New Balance at VR Surat.”
The store houses the label’s 1080, Rebel, 9060, and latest M1000 series, featuring its ‘Fresh Foam X’ and ‘FuelCell technologies.’ For its inaugural showcase, guests were immersed in New Balance’s latest collection and explored its fusion of performance and aesthetics.
New Balance first entered India in the early 2000s but later closed its stores, re-entering the country in 2016, Indian Retailer reported. Today, the brand counts brick-and-mortar stores in cities including Pune, Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Bengaluru.
Headquartered in Boston, US, New Balance reported worldwide sales of $7.8 billion in 2024. The brand describes itself as independent since 1906 and employs 10,000 associates globally.
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In a letter to Philip Butler, chair of the Section 301 Committee of the Office of the US Trade Representative, Beth Hughes, AAFA vice president for trade and customs policy, said the association
US trade body AAFA recently said it does not believe the application of the Section 301 tariffs to remedy China’s ‘harmful’ trade practices and policies has been an effective tool.
It recommended the US administration to determine if any of the exclusions listed should qualify for permanent or more-longer term exclusion periods to give US companies more predictability.
strongly supports the extension of the current China 301 exclusions, which are set to expire on November 29 this year, and recommended the US administration to determine if any of the exclusions listed should qualify for permanent or more-longer term exclusion periods to give US companies more predictability.
Close to 97 per cent of apparel, footwear and related goods sold in the United States today
are imported. Yet the United States maintains high duties on these products—some of the highest levied on any product—adversely affecting US consumers who ultimately pay those duties in the form of higher prices, the letter noted.
“Although the average trade weighted tariff rate imposed on all products was approximately 2.35 per cent in 2024, the average trade weighted tariff rate in 2024 on knit apparel was 14.90 per cent, woven apparel 14.29 per cent, footwear 12.25 per cent, home textiles 8.70 per cent, and 13.85 per cent on travel goods.1 Moreover, the amount of tariffs collected on imports of US apparel, footwear, textiles, and travel goods in 2024 exceed $18.3 billion,” the letter said.
This burden falls disproportionately on products imported by the sector, even though many of these products are no longer made in commercial quantities in the United States, AAFA observed.
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