Bangladesh’s apparel exports posted a 2.15 percent year-on-year negative growth in the first 21 days of December.
In the first three weeks of December readymade garments export declined to $2.49 billion from $2.54 billion during the same period of last year, the statistics released by Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) reveal.
The BGMEA is a rare trade body in South Asia that closely monitors the exports of its members daily. The statistics point out that the export of RMG was negative in 13 out of 21 days in December and positive in eight days. An interesting stat in this regard is that RMG exports registered a huge surge of 327 percent growth in a single day and a decline of 51 percent on another day.
The garment export earnings dropped suddenly in September after a long stretch of growth for the previous 13 months. Then it bounced back in October and November this year as some buyers received their deferred shipments of goods during that time.
Industry insiders said the slowdown of apparel shipments was on the cards this year as fewer orders were received by most factories compared to previous years. They apprehend that this decline may continue till May 2023 as the buyers are not offering commercially viable prices.
Exporters fear that December’s performance indicates the bearish trends in the coming months. They appealed to the central bank for support. The central bank said term loans that were repayable in the September-December quarter this year cannot be classified if 50% of the installments are paid in due time. The remaining half of the installments will have to be paid within one year after the maturity of the loans. However, the garment factory owners said they need time till June next year for repaying the due amount.
