According to data for the first 10 months of 2022 released by the Office of Textiles and Apparel (OTEXA) of the U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. garment orders to Bangladesh are growing rapidly, surpassing those to China, the leading garment manufacturing leader. Order growth rate. From January to October 2022, the United States imported approximately US$8.5 billion in ready-made garments from Bangladesh, an increase of 49% compared with the same period in 2021. In comparison, the US imported US$19.3 billion in ready-made garments from China in the first 10 months of last year, which was only 49% higher than the same period in 2021. US$16 billion, an increase of about 21%.
In addition, OTEXA data shows that in 2021, the United States imported US$7.15 billion of ready-made clothing from Bangladesh and US$19.6 billion of ready-made clothing from China; compared with 2020, Bangladesh and China The growth rate is 37% and 29%.
Ready-made garment exporters and economists say Bangladesh is attracting buyers from the United States and the European Union who want to reduce purchases from China. He also said that the advantages of relatively low cost, reliability and easier access to labor are among the reasons why US buyers have increased orders from Bangladesh.
Ahsan H. Mansur, executive director and economist of the Bangladesh Policy Research Institute, was surprised by this growth rate. He had predicted that the country’s exports would fall by February this year. will continue to decline. He pointed out: Bangladesh is attracting Chinese customers.
At the same time, Mohammad Abdur Razzaque, chairman of the non-profit and non-partisan Bangladesh Research and Policy Integration for Development Organization, specifically pointed out that Beijing’s global role has a significant impact on Dakar ( capital of Bangladesh) has a positive impact on its business. He said: China’s tense relations with Western countries are beneficial to orders from other countries, including Bangladesh. It appears that some major U.S. buyers want to wind down their business with China.
Neela Hosne Ara, head of CronyGroup, a garment manufacturer based in Narayanganj with 30,000 workers, said that this is happening. Recently, we have received reports from some companies that have previously done business with China. Orders from American companies.
According to the Bangladesh Knitted Garment Manufacturing and Export Association (BKMEA), Bangladesh is not the only country and garment manufacturing center to benefit from this trend.
BKMEA Vice Chairman Fazlee Shamim Ehsan said: Western countries have increased export orders in recent months, and currently some export orders have been placed to other countries, especially Bangladesh and Vietnam. .
Bangladesh’s garment industry is one of the engines of the country’s export economy. The industry employs at least 3 million workers, mostly women, working in factories with low wages and unsafe working conditions.
Expected Growth
July 2022 American Fashion Industry Council ( A USFIA (USFIA) survey shows that 55% of U.S. executives expect that the amount of ready-made clothing imported from Bangladesh will exceed the amount imported from China, Vietnam, and other countries/regions in the next two years.
The USFIA report pointed out that the feedback from the respondents also showed that companies are “minimizing” the purchase of ready-made garments from China, and are also looking for ways to reduce their reliance on Chinese textile supplies. method.
The U.S. Embassy in Dakar explains Bangladesh’s role as a trading partner: The United States is Bangladesh’s largest exporter, and U.S. garment companies are increasingly turning Bangladesh into regarded as the most important trading and investment partner. We value our business relations with Bangladesh, which ranks eighth in population in the world. Its position in the U.S. import business illustrates the competitiveness and quality of products made in Bangladesh.
Although China is still the world’s largest exporter of ready-made garments, Bangladesh ranks second. According to data from the Export Promotion Bureau of Bangladesh, Bangladesh’s total exports in December last year were US$5.37 billion, of which garment exports were US$4.66 billion, the highest in a single month.
