Al Amin :
The country’s apparel sector is bouncing back gradually as 80 per cent of the cancelled export orders have reassured with conditions, the sector insiders said.
They said buyers are adding additional conditions for payment. Some are taking time to pay as much as one year and some want more discounts.
Dr Rubana Huq, President of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), said, “More than 80 per cent of the cancelled import orders have already been reassured with conditions.”
“In some cases, it takes one year time to pay. Some of the buyers issued orders right now but they will receive shipment in the next year, some want more discounts. We have no alternative way but to accept the orders at the moment. But it is good news for us that we are coming out from the order cancellation situation,” she said.
The sector started bearing the brunt of the ongoing coronavirus outbreak, as some buyers, especially those from the affected countries, had gradually started cancelling their import orders.
According to the BGMEA sources, around three hundreds buyers cancelled work orders amounting over Tk 27000 crore since the beginning of this year.
Following the pandemic, the Prime Minister announced stimulus package worth Tk 5000 crore for the sector to overcome the critical situation.
The BGMEA also requested the world reputed 41 brands by sending letters so that they don’t cancel or postpone orders and agreed for late payment if necessary.
Following the letters, export orders have started coming back when clothe shops reopen in Europe and USA in May.
DBL Group, one of the largest export
companies of the country, exports the apparel items to reputed brands including H&M, Wal-Mart, G-Star, Zara and Puma.
After the outbreak of the Covid-19, all the brands except two postponed their import orders. But at least 97 percent of the orders have re-backed in the last one and half months, said M A Rahim Firoz, Vice-Chairman of the DBL Group.
Like the DBL Group, many other export companies have confirmed that their cancelled orders have come back in recent time with conditions.
Dr Khandaker Golam Moazzem, Research Director of the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), said the statistic of the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) revealed in the last June showed exports in the country’s apparel sector are increasing gradually. Hopefully, it will be further increased ahead of the Christmas Day.
It’s a positive sign for the factory owners and labourers of the sector, he added.
Due to the outbreak of the Covid-19, Bangladesh loses around Tk 58000 crore export earnings from the sector in the last fiscal year.
The European Union (EU) and the US are the major destinations for locally produced ready-made garment (RMG) items. After the beginning of the pandemic, buyers mostly from the EU communicated with local suppliers about their latest decisions on order cancellation, and deferred shipments.
