Apparel shipment to US takes a nosedive

Bangladesh's garment export to the United States fell 23.33 percent year-on-year to $5.77 billion in January-September owing to a demand slowdown in the world's largest economy and the piling up of stocks.

Exporters fetched $8.28 billion in the identical nine-month period of 2022, according to data from the Office of Textiles and Apparel (OTEXA) of the US.

If textile and apparel shipments are taken into consideration collectively, the earnings would stand at $5.92 billion, a decrease of 23.88 percent.

The US is the single-largest export destination for Bangladesh. Last year, suppliers shipped garment items worth $10.02 billion to the country, the highest in a single year.

In January-September this year, apparel imports of the US from the world fell by 22.81 percent year-on-year to $60.82 billion, OTEXA data showed.

The decline came at 21.85 percent to $81.13 billion if both textile and apparel products were considered jointly.

The garment shipment, which contributes nearly 85 percent to national export receipts, has been falling to the main export destination for the last few months owing to unsold stocks with retailers and brands.

Some exporters, however, say the earnings are witnessing correction after receipts surged more than 50 percent in the US last year.

Exports will not grow at the same pace in the same year, they say, adding that the shipment has slowed in recent months.

The sales of garment items in the US and Europe may remain dull this year although Christmas and New Year sales are expected to pick up.

According to a forecast by the National Retail Federation (NRF), the largest retail platform in the US, holiday spending is expected to reach record levels in November and December and will grow between 3 percent and 4 percent to between $957.3 billion and $966.6 billion.

"It is not surprising to see holiday sales growth returning to pre-pandemic levels," NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said in a press release.

"Overall household finances remain in good shape and will continue to support consumers' ability to spend."

Despite a slower growth rate compared with the past three years when trillions of dollars of stimulus led to unprecedented rates of retail spending, this year's holiday spending is consistent with the average annual holiday increase of 3.6 percent from 2010 to 2019, the press release said.

"Consumers remain in the driver's seat, and are resilient despite headwinds of inflation, higher gas prices, stringent credit conditions and elevated interest rates," NRF Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz said.

"We expect spending to continue through the end of the year on a range of items and experiences, but at a slower pace."

In mid-October, Kleinhenz said clothing and clothing accessory sales were down 0.8 percent month-over-month seasonally adjusted, but up 0.8 percent unadjusted year-on-year.

AK Azad, chairman and chief executive officer of Ha-Meem Group, a top garment exporter to the US, says the shipment of garment items to the country will not rebound until June next year.

"This is because the demand has fallen in the US and retailers and brands could not sell their old stocks."

He said the inflow of work orders for the next season has been low and buyers are offering reduced prices to local suppliers.

Faruque Hassan, president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, said the export to the US fell not only in value but also in volume.

"The sales are falling because of higher inflation and higher bank interest rates. Consumers are still prioritising basic commodities over non-essential items like value-added garments."

According to the BGMEA chief, local garment suppliers usually cater to a lot of orders in October and November, but this year the work flows have not been too high because of labour and political unrest in recent months.

"However, Bangladesh is performing well in new markets such as Japan, South Korea, India and the UK as well as in some EU markets."