The export of ready-made garment (RMG) products from Bangladesh to non-traditional market destinations reached $6.33 billion in 2024, according to data from the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB).
The data was compiled by the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA).
The exports to the nontraditional market made up a significant 16.46% of Bangladesh’s total RMG exports in 2024.
According to EPB data, Bangladesh exported apparel items worth $38.48 billion to their global export destinations in 2024. The earnings from woven were $17.95 billion, and from knitwear were $20.52 billion.
Bangladesh’s primary export destinations include the US, Canada, the UK, and EU countries, which are known as traditional markets, while other countries are considered non-traditional markets.
Japan, Australia, Russia, India, China, South Korea, UAE, Malaysia, Brazil, Mexico, others are major destinations from the non-traditional side.
The EPB data showed that of the $6.33 billion in export earnings, $3.10 billion were from woven items, and $3.22 billion were from knitwear.
Japan was the top destination for Bangladeshi RMG products, as the exporters shipped apparel items worth $1.11 billion. This was followed by Australia, India, and South Korea, where Bangladesh exported items worth $830.96 million, $606.54 million, and $445.78 million, respectively.
Moreover, export earnings from Turkiye, Mexico, the United Arab Emirates, and China stood at $425.95 million, $325.42 million, $244.44 million, and $216.66 million, respectively, in 2024.
In 2024, the European Union remained the largest destination for Bangladeshi apparel exporters. The country shipped apparel items worth $19.37 billion, which was 50.34% of the total RMG exports.
The major destinations in the EU markets were Germany, Spain, France, the Netherlands, Poland, Italy, and Denmark, where the Bangladeshi RMG manufacturers exported apparel items worth $4.83 billion, $3.42 billion, $2.13 billion, $1.95 billion, $1.65 billion, $1.51 billion, and $1.09 billion, respectively.
Bangladesh shipped apparel worth $7.20 billion to the USA, the largest single destination for the country’s apparel, in the last year. The US market covered 18.72% of the total apparel exports.
Moreover, the EPB data added that in 2024, Bangladeshi manufacturers exported RMG products worth $4.33 billion to the UK, which was 11.25% of the total export earnings from RMG exports.
Canada’s export earnings were $1.24 billion in 2024, which was 3.23% of the total earnings from apparel exports.
According to EPB data, Bangladesh earned $35.89 billion by exporting readymade garments to its global destinations.
Meanwhile, EPB initially reported that Bangladesh exported apparel items worth $47.39 billion in 2023. However, in June 2024, a significant discrepancy was found among the export data of the EPB, Bangladesh Bank, and NBR.
To reconcile the discrepancies in reporting export earnings, the EPB prepared the data based on real-time shipment data as per NBR Asycuda World, and export earnings stood at $35.89 billion in 2023.
Mohiuddin Rubel, former director of the BGMEA, believed the Bangladesh RMG industry had the potential for qualitative changes as it diversified product lines and explored new markets.
He also said that if they target these nontraditional markets, they must observe product trends and produce accordingly.
“Development of infrastructure that meets product demand requires enhanced R&D,” he added, saying that they have to come out of the traditional way to grab non-traditional markets.
Moreover, the exporters said that diversification, manmade fibre, resolving NBR-related issues, and signing FTAs and PTAs would help them grab non-traditional markets.
The manufacturers are confident of getting orders as the country has the safest RMG sector and the highest number of green factories in the world, according to industry insiders.
Moreover, industry insiders said that achieving sustainable improvements in industrial relations and establishing stable political and economic reforms are essential for restoring confidence as they dedicate themselves to the immediate future.
