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US Tariff Blow Hits Agra’s Leather Hub

Agra’s leather and footwear industry suffering a hit as US tariffs rise to 50%, slashing down exports, threatening jobs, and leaving factories in deep crisis.

Agra Trends

September 03, 2025
1 minute
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Agra is known for the Taj Mahal, but the city also wears another crown—it’s one of India’s biggest leather and footwear hubs. From narrow lanes buzzing with small workshops to big export houses, shoes made in Agra walk their way to shelves across the world. But today, that crown feels heavier than ever.

The reason? The United States has doubled tariffs on Indian imports to a staggering 50%, starting August 27, 2025. And Agra’s leather industry is right in the firing line.

In financial year 2022–23, Agra had shipped footwear worth about ₹370 crore to the US, which slipped down to ₹260 crore by 2023-24. Now with these new tariffs, exporters are scared that they might barely pass the mark of ₹100 crore surviving this storm. For many businesses, this calamity means months of hard works stashing in their warehouses without a way out to see the market.

Exporters are left shocked and worried. “It’s like someone pulled the rug from under our feet,” says local shoe maker Puran Dawar. Buyers are cancelling shipments at lightening speed and moving to make purchases from Vietnam or Bangladesh. Workers, especially the ones who depend upon daily wages for their livelihood, are left to wonder if they will even get work next day—or none at all.

The government is promising to help the businesses with GST relief and credit support, but the unpredictability of what’s to do next still hangs in the air like a knife. Shoes and leather are like an identification of people of Agra and this news of US tariff is more of a distress than a trade policy.