Local manufacturers worried
Local garment manufacturers are worried as the apparel export of India has surged in the last few months as the competitiveness of manufacturers of the neighbouring country increased due to depreciation of the Indian rupee and Bangladesh factory safety concerns.
India exported garment products worth $6 billion in five months (April-August) in the current financial year 2013-2014 with a 14 per cent growth year-on-year, as the apparel sector rebounded from the poor performance in the FY 2012-2013, reported Indian media on Saturday.
India’s exports in FY 2012-2013 fell by 5.76 per cent to $12.92 billion from the previous financial year. Indian financial year starts from April while Bangladesh’s financial year begins in July.
But, the export orders in India in recent months soared because of rupee depreciation against the US dollar and the ‘poor safety’ record of Bangladesh, a key competitor, reports Times of India on Saturday.
Although India had initially set a target to achieve a $17 billion export earning from the apparel sector by FY 2014-2015, Apparel Export Promotion Council of the country now expects that the earning could touch $17 billion by the current FY 2013-2014.
‘With China showing more interest in engineering and IT sector and Bangladesh being looked at as a non-compliant country, global players, both in traditional and non-traditional markets are eyeing India’s potential for outsourcing with great interest, A Shaktivel, chairman of AEPC, on Friday night told reporters in Tirupur of the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Tirupur is the main apparel manufacturing area of India.
Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association president Md Atiqul Islam told New Age on Saturday the rise of India’s apparel export was threatening for local manufacturers.
‘Because of 15 per cent devaluation of the rupee and 8 per cent appreciation of the taka against the US dollar in recent times, we have already lost ground in costing of products,’ he said.
‘Besides, compliance issue is a problem for us, and there is a negative campaign in this regard. We are trying to overcome the problem. But, Indian manufacturers are taking the advantage by highlighting our compliance issue,’ he said.
He said that many of the export orders of different companies were shifted to India.
‘We can tackle the situation. The government can set the dollar rate for the time being for the exporters to compete with the Indian exporters,’ said Atiqul.
Former BGMEA president Abdus Salam Murshedy said that the rise of Indian exports was a challenge for the country’s apparel sector as orders were being shifted to the neighbouring country.
‘India is a cotton producing country and it has 100 years of experience in the sector. The rupee devaluation is helping them. Besides, the Indian government also announced special steps for the textiles sector in the budget,’ he said.
He said that in the next few months the Indian manufacturers might continue to get advantage because of looming political conflict in Bangladesh over the general elections.
Murshedy said they were trying to overcome the compliance issue together with the US and European buyers. ‘If the brands remain with us in addressing the compliance issue, the RMG export growth curve of the country will be in 90 degrees angle after two years,’ he said.
Times of India referring Bangladesh reported that the retail chain stores in the European Union were also under pressure not to buy from countries where the compliance record is ‘poor’.
Raja M Shanmugham, managing director of Tirupur-based export house Warsaw International, said, ‘Buyers are giving preference to India while placing new orders.’
Premal Udani, MD of garment export house Kaytee Corporation, said, ‘The American market has revived.’
AEPC chairman A Shaktivel, who is also the president of Tirupur Exporters’ Association, ‘The response has been good both in traditional and non-traditional markets,’ he said.
He said India could emerge as the largest hub for sourcing of apparel and knitwear garments in the next five years.
Stating that India has been at a cost disadvantage compared to Bangladesh, Vietnam and others, he said this year was better as non-compliance issues in Bangladesh have resulted in increased orders to India.
India, with its ‘fairly high level of compliant’ garment export factories, has become an attractive sourcing destination, he said.
‘With this growing trend, apparel exports can easily cross the targeted $17 billion export this FY,’ he said.
Shaktivel said AEPC delegations would visit Israel, Japan and Australia to strike deals with major buyers there.
On availability of raw materials, like cotton yarn to meet the huge increasing requirements, he said there were no problems on that front though fluctuation in yarn price was a cause of concern.
‘Overall it would be a good period for the apparel sector from now,’ Shaktivel said.
Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies senior research fellow Nazneen Ahmed, however, told New Age that she thought some orders were diverted to India because of rupee valuation. ‘I don’t think that any order is being shifted because of compliance issue. The compliance of local RMG units is not bad if we compare with the Indian units,’ she said.
The Bangladesh export earning from woven garments was $2.05 billion with 16.98 per cent growth in July-August in the current financial year which fell short of 4.69 per cent of its target of $2.15 billion.
The export earning of knitwear in July-August of the current FY amounted to $2.1 billion with 17.19 per cent growth against 12.95 per cent negative growth during the same period last year.
But, export earning from woven in August grew by only 3.97 per cent and knitwear export rose by 7.01 per cent year-on-year as two back to back factory disasters — Tazreen Fashions fire and Rana Plaza collapse — started to affect the RMG exports in the month.
-With New Age input
