Bangladesh retains top position in RMG export to UK by volume
Desk Report: Bangladesh retained the top position in garment export to the UK in terms of volume, but the nation's apparel exporters continue to be paid one of the lowest prices in British markets.
In the January-October period last year, Bangladesh exported 178.39 million kilogrammes (kgs) of garment items to the UK while China shipped 159.25 million kgs, according to data compiled by the BGMEA.
Bangladesh's export of garment items by volume decreased 8.83 percent in the January-October period last year while China's fell by 11.39 percent during that time.
In 2022, Bangladesh had exported 232.68 million kgs compared to China's 222.83 kgs.
The overall import of garment items by retailers and brands in the UK was lower last year because of historic inflationary pressure on consumers stemming from the severe fallouts of the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war.
In the January-October period last year, overall import of garment items by British retailers and brands fell 12.19 percent to 604.02 million kgs.
However, local garment exporters received one of the lowest prices from British retailers and brands, mainly because their shipments consist of low-cost basic garment items. In comparison, other countries like China and Turkey received better prices by exporting high value-added garment items.
Bangladesh's average price is 21.39 percent less than China's, 32 percent less than Turkey's and even 26.75 percent less than India's, according to a price comparison by Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA).
"This does not necessarily substantiate our competitiveness, but also reveals our absence in the mid-higher priced segment of the market. Going forward, we should set our strategy to broadly explore the mid-higher priced segment," BGMEA President Faruque Hassan said in a statement.
Bangladesh shares of UK's clothing import amounts to 23 percent in monetary value and 28 percent in terms of volume, which means there are still opportunities in this market, he added.
"So far, we have been able to secure our position through cost leadership, well-timed delivery, and quality, which kept us ahead of the competition," the statement also said.
The term 'higher value-added garment' is often misinterpreted as items like outerwear, lingerie, or activewear. But in fact, it means moving to the mid-to-higher priced segment of the market, where a t-shirt or polo shirt can earn higher prices due to complex processing techniques such as advanced fabrication, embroidery, printing, or even by offering more functionality.
In terms of value of garment shipment to the UK, Bangladesh is very close to China. In the January-October period last year, Bangladesh exported apparel items worth $3.01 billion to the UK, registering 8.98 percent negative growth compared to the corresponding period in 2022, the data also showed.
On the other hand, China's garment shipment to the UK in terms of value decreased by 21.01 percent to $3.18 billion in the January-October period last year.
Pre-Covid-19 global imports of clothing in the UK stood at $16.83 billion in 2018 and $16.45 billion in 2019. In 2020, when the pandemic began, imports fell to $15.54 billion.
In 2021, clothing import by the UK slightly reduced, reaching $ 14.35 billion.
Clothing import then made a solid recovery and hit $17.34 billion in 2022, but it still remained below pre-Covid levels quantity-wise.
Although it was widely expected that the momentum of positive growth would sustain in 2023, the UK's global import of clothing declined by 16.44 percent in terms of value to $12.09 billion in the January-October period.
Currently, Bangladesh is the second-largest apparel supplier in terms of value to the UK, which is the third-largest export destination for the country after the USA and Germany.
It is expected that Bangladesh will also overtake China in this market in terms of value soon, said Hassan.
Bangladesh has already overtaken China in garment shipment to the European Union (EU) in terms of volume and topped denim export both to the EU and the USA.
Biniyougbarta/SAM//
