The COVID epidemic reduced global demand for apparel, and prominent fashion firms are still hesitant to make large orders, causing a huge concern for Bangladesh’s critical textile sector.
Textile exports from the South Asian nation fell by approximately 17% in 2020. Shipments to Europe, which account for 60 percent of Bangladesh’s garment exports, fell by about 19 percent.
According to the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), there has been no increase in demand or exports so far this year.
“Apparel exports fell 5.83 percent year over year in January,” the association’s president, Rubana Huq, told DW.
“We have informally urged that US-cotton manufactured clothes be allowed duty-free access to the country’s market,” BTMA President Mohammad Ali Khokon told a prominent daily.
“We also asked them to bring cotton from transshipment ports like Sri Lanka, Malaysia, or Singapore.” We can acquire cargoes in 30 days this way,” Khokon remarked.
In 2020, Bangladesh bought 8.2 million bales of cotton from the foreign market, with 1.83 million bales coming from the United States.
Bangladesh bought over 1.15 million bales in FY21, according to CCI officials, accounting for roughly 14% of the country’s total imports.
ref: https://www.dw.com/en/covid-bangladeshs-textile-industry-hit-hard-by-pandemic/a-56552114
