Woven, cut-and-sew apparel makers also hit hard
Yarn price has increased further over the past one week, putting the small- and medium-size knitting units, which mostly cater to buyers searching for low-cost products, in a more difficult situation, industry insiders said.
At the end of the past week a kilogram of widely used 30-count yarn was sold for $5.20 to $5.40, marking a price rise of at least 20 cents over the last two weeks.
Industry people say small- and medium-size knitters are suffering most as they usually produce low-end T-shirts at very low profit margins.
Hashibur Rahman, owner of a small knit unit in Narayanganj, said SME knitters like him usually made basic T-shirts, importers of which always pressured them to lower the price.
‘We work mainly for small importers who habitually ask to lower prices more and more,’ said Hashib, adding, ‘They offer a compensating price hike of merely five cents when the yarn price rises by 10 cents.’
Fazlul Hoque, the immediate past president of Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers’ and Exporters’ Association, observed that SME knitters were struggling hard as a mad rise in yarn price had almost choked their business.
‘It’s not unlikely that a good number of SME knitters will go out of business in the next few months, accruing unbearable losses,’ he added.
Local spinners have also increased the
yarn price exorbitantly following a sharp rise in cotton price on the global market.
According to industry insiders’ calculations, the yarn price has increased by at least 40 per cent over the past three to four months.
They said the price of 30-count yarn rose to $5 per kilogram [2.2 pounds] on the local market in mid-October, while just one year back it ranged between $3.5 and $3.6.
Spinners say as they entirely depend on imported raw cotton so it is only reasonable for the price of their product to follow the price trend of cotton on the international market.
More than three-fourths of Bangladesh’s $7 billion earnings from knitwear exports come from shipments of T-shirts and sweaters that are made of cotton yarns.
Woven and cut-and-sew apparel makers have also been hit hard by the increased price of cotton as their major products like jeans and denim wears are mainly made of cotton-based fabrics.
