At a time of declining global demand for readymade garments in the major markets, it is heartening to see a considerable surge in exports to new and non-traditional markets. Interestingly, this pickup, while demonstrating a much desired boost in export to new markets, makes up for a slide in export to the major and traditional markets. It is here that the new markets play a significant role in offsetting excessive reliance on the EU and North American markets-known as traditional markets of Bangladesh's RMG.
A FE report says that export of apparel products to a number of new markets stood at $8.37 billion in the just past fiscal (22-23), registering a commendable annual growth of 31.38 per cent, amid a slump in export to the aforementioned traditional markets. The non-traditional markets accounted for 17.82 per cent of the total RMG earnings worth US$46.99 billion in the fiscal year. The report, quoting official statistics, informs that Australia, Japan and India were the key markets responsible for increased export of apparels from Bangladesh with earnings from each of these countries surpassing a billion-dollar mark. By contrast, the country's export receipts from the existing major markets like Germany and the USA showed a fall in the period. According to industry people, Australia, Brazil, Chile, China, India, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, New Zealand and Turkey are the 15 prospective markets beyond the three traditional export destinations: the United States, the European Union and Canada. Prospect of these and other new destinations has received a sharp focus of the country's exporters as part of their market expansion and product diversification drive following the Covid-induced sluggish demand, high inflation, rise in interest rates and effects of the Russia-Ukraine war on the major markets of the EU and the USA.
What, however, is important to note here is that over the decades Bangladesh's apparel export has been growing mainly eying the EU and the North American markets. Being reliant mostly on buyers' choice of these major markets, exploring other markets simultaneously was not easy as it required product development and product adaptation according to the consumers' choices and preferences of those markets. This seemed to have deterred many exporters to vigorously pursue market expansion, despite the risk of over-reliance on the major markets. The scenario has no doubt changed lately as evidenced from the country's export performance in new markets in the recent years. Obviously a laudable job, exploring fresh pastures for expansion of apparel business would require persistent efforts in getting to know the special consumers choices as well as fulfilling the compliance norms that may largely vary from country to country.
The new markets deemed as potential destinations of Bangladesh's readymade garments look sustaining enough. If exploited well, those markets may prove quite robust in the near future provided there is enough thrust on the part of the exporters and the government provides the facilitations they require.
