Bangladesh’s garment exports reached $12.25 billion in Q1 2023, while raw material imports for the sector were $3.54 billion, leading to a value addition of $8.70 billion or 71%, the highest in the country’s history. However, traders face challenges due to conditions imposed by the central bank on imports and a shortage of dollars, resulting in decreased garment imports.
Imports have fallen by 34.36% in the first ten months of FY23 compared to the previous year. Industrial raw material imports for garments decreased by 31.85% in the same period, while capital machinery imports dropped by 56.91%. An anonymous leader of the garment association raised concerns about the accuracy of the central bank’s data and questioned the registration of exports. The central bank reported an increase in exports to the UK and France but a decline in exports to the US and Germany. Possible laundering of black money disguised as export earnings were also mentioned. Despite some challenges and the threat of a global recession, Bangladesh’s readymade garment sector saw a 6.32% increase in export earnings compared to the same quarter last year.
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