Khairul Alam, Dhaka: In the past five years, from 2017 to 2022, US imports of garments from Bangladesh have increased by 13.99%, while imports from the world have grown by 4.50% annually.
The United States is one of the largest importers of garments to Bangladesh and the world. In 2022, US imports from the world increased 22.48% year-on-year to reach $99.93 billion from $81.58 billion in 2021.
Bangladesh remains the third largest garment exporter to the US with a share of 9.75% of its total garment imports, which was 8.76% in 2021.
In 2022, US imports of garments from Bangladesh grew by 36.38% year-on-year. The United States imported $9.74 billion worth of clothing from Bangladesh in 2022, rising to $7.16 billion in 2021 and $5.40 billion in 2018, according to a BGMEA press release.
If the statistics are based on the quantity measured in square meter equivalent (SME), US garment imports from Bangladesh registered a year-on-year growth of 20.65 percent, reaching 3.14 billion SMEs in 2022 from 2.6 billion in 2021.
On the other hand, US imports from China decreased by 3.11 percent in quantity terms in 2022 compared to 2021.
China as the largest apparel import source for the US with a 21.75% share, posted 10.83% year-on-year growth in 2022 in dollar terms. On the other hand, US apparel imports from China reached $21.73 billion in 2022. $19.60 billion in 2021 which was $27.37 billion in 2018.
On the other hand, Vietnam remained in second place. US clothing from Vietnam was valued at $12.21 billion in 2018 which was increased to $14.37 in 2021. In 2022 it reached $18.24 billion. Vietnam’s share of total clothing imports in the US also increased to 18.26 percent in 2022. Which was 14.74 percent in 2018.
Both India and Indonesia showed growth of more than 35 percent in 2022 compared to 2021. The share of both countries increased to 5.69 percent and 5.61 percent respectively in 2022 from 4.59 percent and 5. 40 percent in 2018.
Other countries that experienced notable growth include Cambodia 28.46%, South Korea 25.08%, Pakistan 24%, Honduras 19.85%, and Mexico 11.50% in 2022. The share of these countries also increased during the year mentioned.
Since Bangladesh’s share of US garment import is only 9.75 percent, there is a strong possibility to further increase the share, said Farooq Hasan, president of BGMEA, adding that Bangladesh already got the number one denim import position in the US recently.
Also, we still have a number of American brands that we have not yet sourced from Bangladesh or are trying to source on a limited scale. So, as we urge diversification of our markets, we believe that we still have a huge area of expertise in the existing disciplines.”
Noting that there were some issues in trade between the US and Bangladesh, particularly the requirements for fumigation of cotton when importing cotton from the US,
Farooq said: “Our government has already waived the mandatory requirement for fumigation for importing cotton from the US This will surely reduce the time and cost of doing business for our importers.
Other than that, Farooq said, BGMEA is working with the American Footwear and Apparel Association (AAFA) on various issues to facilitate trade between Bangladesh and the US. He said that the 38th IAF World Fashion Congress will be held in Philadelphia in October this year.
The BGMEA Chairman added, “We will be participating in this conference as IAF members and I am the IAF board director. I think we will have a great opportunity there to highlight Bangladesh and our RMG industry.”