RMG exports earn $23.5b last year

The country's readymade garment (RMG) exports earned US$23.5 billion in 2013 with a 13 per cent year-on-year growth despite the sector witnessing several dreadful accidents including Rana Plaza collapse and Tazreen Fashion fire that left over 1200 people dead in the year.  
Woven items led the earning spree as it fetched $12.05 billion while knitwear sector $11.44 billion in the year (January-December), Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) statistics said.
"Garment exporters are aggressively pushing the exports though it had to enforce several compliance requirements after the disasters had taken place," said Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) president Md. Atiqul Islam.
Bangladesh's garment exports increased from $6.8 billion in 2005 to $23.3 billion in 2013, recording a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16.6 per cent.
During the period the government undertook measures including uninterrupted power supply and a priority at the Chittagong port for RMG shipment to maintain the growth.
Asked whether the accidents impacted on annual export Mr Islam said in October 2013, because of these incidents, there was a slowdown in exports, which grew only 3 per cent. But initial trends point to a robust growth of over 41 per cent in November, suggesting a healthy bounce back by the key sector.
Exporters Association of Bangladesh (EAB) President Abdus Salam Murshedy said the figures would have increased had there been no industrial disasters like the Tazreen fire and Rana Plaza collapse. He said Bangladesh is now the best competitive country in the world.
The country's low labour costs have helped it secure business from international apparel brands and retailers like Gap, Tesco, JC Penney, Wal-Mart, H&M, Kohl's and Marks & Spencer.
The government has set an export target of $30.5 billion for fiscal year 2014, which began on July 1.
The country implemented a 76.66 per cent hike in minimum wage for entry-level workers in the clothing industry since December 1, 2013. The extent of impact of this wage rise on the competitiveness of the country's apparel industry, and thereby its exports, would be visible in the export figures of the country in the second half of the ongoing financial year.
Bangladesh is the second-largest garments exporter in the world with around 4.2 million people employed in the industry. The garment industry provides more than 80 per cent of the country's total export earnings, and 13 per cent of the GDP.