Shah Alam Nur :
Bangladesh’s exports rose by 13.73 percent to $2.75 billion in November from a year earlier, driven by stronger garment sales, official data showed on Sunday.
Exports from July to November, the first five months of the country’s 2015-16 financial year, rose 6.7 per cent to $12.88 billion from the same period a year earlier, the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) said.
Sales of garments, comprising knitwear and woven items, totaled $10.46 billion in the July-November period, compared with $9.69 billion a year earlier.
There might be ups and downs in export earnings as the country’s apparel industry is going through a development process,” Faruque Hassan, Vice- President of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) told The New Nation on Sunday.
He said, “There is nothing to cheer with the growth, as we are losing competitive edge, while others are gaining gradually.”
The increase in the earnings may be occurred due to the seasonal orders and reasonable price of the raw materials, he said.
He said “We are stepping into a safe industry, where workers will enjoy safe workplace and other facilities as per the rules of the land.”
Bangladeshi apparel is losing out in emerging markets to competitors like Vietnam, Cambodia, India and Pakistan, as many buyers withdrew cut back orders due to political unrest and safety issues in the country.
The declining trend in export growth is due to the impact of political unrest and industrial disasters that dented the confidence of international retailers, Atiqul Islam, former President of BGMEA said.
He said “By this time, we have overcome this problem and hope to boost our exports to the new destinations.”
He said that a committee had been formed to explore business opportunities in new markets, especially in Mexico, Brazil and Argentina.
The non-traditional market’s contribution increased to 15.33 per cent in the last fiscal, which was 14.69 per cent in the previous fiscal while the EU and the US accounted for 60.28 per cent and 20.74 per cent respectively.
Apparel exports grew by 37.05 per cent in South Africa, 26.33 per cent in China, 23.88 per cent in Australia and 14.02 per cent in Japan while it declined by 21.57 per cent in Turkey.
Exports to the new markets have been picking up over recent years since 2008 when total exports to non-traditional markets was worth only $6 million.
Ferdous Perves Bivon, Managing Director of Creative Woolwear Ltd said “This has been the outcome of ceaseless exploration of alternative markets even in the wake of global downturn in general and the Eurozone crisis in particular.”
He said despite all the odds, the RMG export to non-traditional markets is growing.
“Because all of these endeavours, we could reduce the number of vulnerable factories to less than two per cent,” he said.
Bangladesh’s exports rose by 13.73 percent to $2.75 billion in November from a year earlier, driven by stronger garment sales, official data showed on Sunday.
Exports from July to November, the first five months of the country’s 2015-16 financial year, rose 6.7 per cent to $12.88 billion from the same period a year earlier, the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) said.
Sales of garments, comprising knitwear and woven items, totaled $10.46 billion in the July-November period, compared with $9.69 billion a year earlier.
There might be ups and downs in export earnings as the country’s apparel industry is going through a development process,” Faruque Hassan, Vice- President of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) told The New Nation on Sunday.
He said, “There is nothing to cheer with the growth, as we are losing competitive edge, while others are gaining gradually.”
The increase in the earnings may be occurred due to the seasonal orders and reasonable price of the raw materials, he said.
He said “We are stepping into a safe industry, where workers will enjoy safe workplace and other facilities as per the rules of the land.”
Bangladeshi apparel is losing out in emerging markets to competitors like Vietnam, Cambodia, India and Pakistan, as many buyers withdrew cut back orders due to political unrest and safety issues in the country.
The declining trend in export growth is due to the impact of political unrest and industrial disasters that dented the confidence of international retailers, Atiqul Islam, former President of BGMEA said.
He said “By this time, we have overcome this problem and hope to boost our exports to the new destinations.”
He said that a committee had been formed to explore business opportunities in new markets, especially in Mexico, Brazil and Argentina.
The non-traditional market’s contribution increased to 15.33 per cent in the last fiscal, which was 14.69 per cent in the previous fiscal while the EU and the US accounted for 60.28 per cent and 20.74 per cent respectively.
Apparel exports grew by 37.05 per cent in South Africa, 26.33 per cent in China, 23.88 per cent in Australia and 14.02 per cent in Japan while it declined by 21.57 per cent in Turkey.
Exports to the new markets have been picking up over recent years since 2008 when total exports to non-traditional markets was worth only $6 million.
Ferdous Perves Bivon, Managing Director of Creative Woolwear Ltd said “This has been the outcome of ceaseless exploration of alternative markets even in the wake of global downturn in general and the Eurozone crisis in particular.”
He said despite all the odds, the RMG export to non-traditional markets is growing.
“Because all of these endeavours, we could reduce the number of vulnerable factories to less than two per cent,” he said.
