Poor growth in RMG export earnings from US, EU

Shah Alam Nur Bangladesh's ready-made garment (RMG) export to traditional markets such as US and European Union (EU) countries witnessed a poor growth in the last seven months due to economic meltdown, sources said. They said if the condition continues, it would be hard to achieve the export target. "Economic situation in the US and EU countries is not good, so demand for RMG products has been falling," Executive Director of Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) Mustafizur Rahman told the FE. He said the present scenario in the USA and EU countries will not be over soon; so local businesses have to hunt for new markets apart from the traditional ones. He advised the policymakers to make the diplomatic missions of Bangladesh abroad more active to boost exports. President of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) Shafiul Islam Mohiuddin said it is an alarming condition for export earning as USA and EU are largest markets for Bangladeshi RMG. He said global economic recession and high rate of unemployment are also responsible for slow growth of exports. Mr Mohiuddin said exports may decline further in near future, if the recession cannot be addressed with timely policy measures. Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) data shows that the RMG sector achieved a 2.85 per cent export growth during the first six months of the current fiscal year (FY 2012-13). Bangladesh's apparel exports to the US rose by $ 63 million in July-December period of the current FY. RMG export to US market in the first six months of the current fiscal year was $ 2.27 billion, which was $ 2.21 billion during the same period of last fiscal. Bangladesh exported garments worth $ 5.81 billion to the EU countries in the first six months of the current fiscal year, a 5.33 per cent rise from $ 5.52 billion in the same period last fiscal, according to BGMEA research-cell data.