Despite various global crises, Bangladesh’s garment exports to the European countries have increased by 12.43 percent in the first three months of the current fiscal year comparing to the same period of the last fiscal year.
During the period between July and August, Bangladesh has exported USD 4.94 billion worth of ready-made garments to the European Union (EU) countries.
However, the entrepreneurs involved in the sector think that it will be difficult to maintain this uptrend in exports of readymade apparel to those countries in the future.
Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) Director Mohiuddin Rubel told Bangladesh Post, “Our export to Germany, the largest export market in the EU, grew only by 1.34 percent to US$ 1.52 billion during the mentioned time. Export to Spain and France showed 21.35 percent and 36.72 percent growth respectively. On the other hand, export to Poland, one of the most promising markets in the EU, declined by 24.49 percent compared to the July-September 2021-22.”
“RMG export to the USA stood at USD 2.01 billion in the first three months of FY 2022-23 with 5.13 percent year-on-year growth, indicating a clear deceleration in growth. At the same time, export to the UK and Canada reached USD 1.19 billion and USD 334.65 million, with 15.11 percent and 17.40 percent growth respectively,” he added.
It’s clear from the data that growth is decelerating in major markets, including USA and Germany caused by global economic turmoil and impact on retail markets, he said.
During the July-September period of FY 2022-23, apparel export to non-traditional markets grew by 25.47 percent to USD 1.76 billion from USD 1.43 billion comparing to the corresponding period of the previous year. Among the non-traditional markets, export to Japan reached USD 320.40 million with 16.60 percent growth while export to India also increased significantly by 66.20 percent, which is USD 306.39 million. On the other hand, export to China, the UAE, South Africa and Russia declined by 3.69 percent, 0.13 percent, 8.71 percent and 47.30 percent respectively during the mentioned period, according to the data available with BGMEA.
