Newspapers have run stories praising the country's lead export earner, readymade garments, for braving the most difficult of times, that too at a pace faster than that of the previous year.
That exports have grown despite the tumultuous political situation at home and the 'negatives' brewing up in the destination markets is really heartening. It's important to note that the overseas buyers, caught in the doubt of whether or not to procure from this country, did not find it sensible to reduce sourcing from Bangladesh.
The case, however, may not be as simple as it may be construed from the figures. True, export remittances have increased during the July-December period compared to that of the corresponding period last year. But how much of the orders were procured during this period and how much of the shipments actually got shipped out (including by air at exorbitant costs) need to be looked into, in order to have an authentic account of exporting in hard times.
Data show that garment export grew by more than 20 per cent to nearly $12bn during the aforementioned period, i.e., the first half of the current fiscal over the same period of the preceding year's $10bn. Exports to major European markets rose by more than 21 per cent to over $7.0bn in the six months compared to the same period of 2012. The trend as regards the US market is also upward - a rise by 13.25 per cent to $2.5bn from $2.27bn in the corresponding six months of 2012.
Besides market-specific growth, there was a noticeable segment-specific growth in garment exports. The knitwear and woven garments registered 19.50 and 20 per cent growth respectively. The country's overall exports also posted a considerable growth of 16.6 per cent to reach $14.68bn in the period from $12.6bn in the July-December period of the previous year.
More than the growth, that needs to be further scrutinised, what actually is inspiring is the commendable penetration of our garment products to new markets. No matter whether the export orders were procured in the last half of the current financial year or shipped out in the same period, the fact that exports to these markets have picked up substantially is encouraging.
Exports to the new markets posted an increase by 37 per cent to $1.37bn during the period from $977m in the corresponding period last year. These markets include Australia, China, India, Brazil, Chile, Korea, Mexico, Japan, Russia, South Africa and Turkey
Of these, Turkey is not per se a new market, but as an individual market, growth in export to Turkey was the highest at $335m with a rise of over 106 per cent in the first half of the current fiscal. The other markets that did not lag very far behind in terms of year-on growth are Russia (73 per cent), China (60 per cent), India (53 per cent) and Chile (32 per cent).
What is yet more significant about the penetration into non-traditional apparel markets is not the growth itself but the opening up of alternative avenues for Bangladesh's apparel products. The overwhelming concentration on the main markets of the EU and the US for decades has, despite consistent growth, been foreshadowed with uncertainties lately. Although these uncertainties stemming from labour rights issues, workplace environment etc., caused a damper on the sector's future, promises to make amends coupled with some initiatives taken so far appear to be supportive to shield the sector from any major dent. In this situation, seeking out alternative export destinations like China and Russia is indeed a success for the local entrepreneurs.
In fact, efforts for diversifying the markets were on for a while, and exports of apparel did take place to a large number of markets across the continents, but sustaining the market presence for a longer term did not seem very convincing. This was because exporters were more focused on bulk orders from their known markets - US and the EU. With the current levels of growth, prospects to export to newer markets on a more and more increased scale should be equally rewarding. The potentials that China and Russia, among others, offer because of their enormous domestic consumption patterns are by all means prospective to provide the Bangladesh garment sector with a much needed breather. Capitalising on the successes already achieved should augment sustained growth in the operations of our key export earner.
The new development has made the industry insiders hopeful. They feel that dependence, albeit excessively, on selected traditional markets may be risk-prone in the days ahead as competition is mounting from a number of exporting nations. Opening up of alternative markets in that case could serve as a safeguard, and at the same time provide opportunities for an extensively diversified base for exporting apparels.
wasiahmed.bd@hotmail.com
