Knitwear and woven garment exports, which account for over 80 percent of total shipments, slipped in the July-August period, dimming prospects for Bangladesh's overseas sales.
In the first two months of the current fiscal year, woven garment export declined 2.06 percent to $1,011.9 million from $1,033.2 million in the same period a year ago, according to Export Promotion Bureau statistics. Knitwear exports marked a 0.48 percent fall from $1,210.14 million in July-August 2008.
Both sectors failed to post growth or meet exports targets for the first two months of fiscal 2009-10.
The August 2009 earnings show 0.71 percent growth, but total export earnings for July-August 2009 show a 3.29 percent decline.
Bangladesh logged $1.4 billion in earnings from overseas shipments in August 2009. Total income from exports in the first two months of the current fiscal year was $2.81 billion, down from $2.9 billion in total exports in the year-earlier period.
EPB Vice Chairman Shahab Ullah said: "This is the first time that knitwear and woven garments both failed to post growth figures and meet targets."
He however said whopping export growth in July and August last year explains why this year's figures do not portray a rise. "But exports will grow in the coming months as signs of economic recovery appeared in global markets."
However, Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) President Fazlul Hoque said a downward curve might continue for the next five to six months, due to slumping global demand.
He also criticised the government's procrastination in disbursing the bailout package, which was earlier announced to shield the export sector from the global financial crisis.
He said disbursement of the package is still far away as the government is yet to form a committee in this regard.
According to BKMEA statistics, knitwear earned $552.46 million in August, posting a 3.02 percent fall, while the woven sector earned $ 489.22 million at the same time, posting 0.68 percent growth.
President of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) Abdus Salam Murshedy said the country's export earnings were bound to drop, as it did not receive proper government support to thwart global recession, unlike many other countries in the world.
Besides the RMG sector, home textiles, textile fabrics, raw jute, tea, leather, frozen food, ceramic products and handicrafts also recorded negative growth than last year's performance.
At the same time, vegetables, tobacco, footwear and petroleum by-products recorded growth over last year's records, but failed to achieve targets.
Jute goods, electronics, cut flower/foliage and agro-processed foods achieved targets and recorded growth.
Source: Kawsar Khan and Refayet Ullah Mirdha, STAR
The working committee of national taskforce on recession on Tuesday recommended the government for giving 5 percent cash incentive to the ready-made garment exporters and its backward integration only for new export destinations to revive the export growth. Read More »
German company Cancun Food Produces Limited is going to establish a high tech food processing industry in the Adamjee Export Processing Zone. Read More »
Fresh unrest is again simmering in the readymade garments (RMG) sector. Three precious lives were lost and over a hundred wounded in the recent deadly violence in Tongi. An apparently disturbed Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, categorically said that the government would not tolerate chaotic situation any more in the garment sector. The garment workers must get all types of facilities as they, with their low paid salaries, find it difficult to make both ends meet, she said. Read More »
The 20th Bangladesh Apparel and Textile Exposition will begin in the capital on Thursday presenting more value added local garments to the international importers. Read More »
Ocean Containers Limited, a fully-owned subsidiary of Summit Alliance Port Ltd, has got approval from the Chittagong Stock Exchange to be listed directly with the bourse. Read More »
Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono promised Thursday to boost investment by removing red tape blamed for slowing growth in Southeast Asia's biggest economy. Read More »
Connectivity in education is key for Bangladesh to step in to the digital era, says a top regional official of Cisco Systems, a leading global supplier of networking equipment and network management. Read More »
An uneasy calm prevailed in industrial town of Tongi Saturday after pitched battles between agitated garment workers and police left an unspecified number of people dead or wounded and forced brief movement of traffic in nearby Dhaka-Mymensingh highway. Read More »
Bangladesh Commerce Minister Faruk Khan yesterday directed the garment associations to submit the structural designs of their member-factories' outmoded buildings to renovate the jerry-built factory houses by December. Read More »
In late 2009 the business community and economists often remark that the level of investment in the economy is too low. The Minister of Finance has recently expressed such concerns. What they mean is that to create jobs for the young people entering the labour force, to raise the productivity of workers, and to make the economy grow faster there has to be much more investment than is now taking place. We examine in this article some of the evidence that it is low and review some of the reasons for this. Perhaps by understanding the reasons it really is possible to figure out how to increase investment. Read More »
The knitwear sector trade body chief in a press briefing yesterday pointed his finger at the absence of strong trade negotiations on the government's part, a setback to raising Bangladesh's capability to tap the $1.2 billion South African apparel market. Read More »
Knitwear and woven garment exports, which account for over 80 percent of total shipments, slipped in the July-August period, dimming prospects for Bangladesh's overseas sales. Read More »
Join Now
Log In
Receive our newsletter
Advertising
Send to a collegue
Print Page
