Garments exports drop 16% in first semester

The garments industry continued to struggle in the first half of the year with exports tumbling by more than 16 percent to $1.327 billion from $1.585 billion in the same period last year due to stiff competition from Chinese and other Southeast Asian rivals.

According to the Garments and Textile Export Board (GTEB), shipments to quota countries, which account for nearly 90 percent of total earnings, dropped by 17.98 percent to $1.157 billion during the six-month period from $1.411 billion in the same period last year.

Garment exports to non-quota countries, which in the past had been the only area of growth, recorded a drop of 2.33 percent to $170.257 million for the first half of the year compared to last year ‘s earnings of $174.316 million.

Among quota markets, shipments to the US tumbled by nearly 20 percent to $974.321 million during the six-month period from $1.211 billion last year as a result of cut-throat competition from Chinese and other Southeast Asian garment exporters.

Import quotas by the US ensure that smaller countries such as the Philippines have access to the lucrative American market with bigger players not allowed to sell as much as they would like to.

Shipments to Canada also recorded a similar decline of 19.36 percent to $30.009 million from $37.214 million last year.

The drop in garment exports was more moderate, though, for European Economic Community (EEC) countries. Shipments to the European bloc declined by 5.65 percent to $153.1988 million from $162.380 million a year ago.

Of the non-quota countries, exports to Japan declined by 21.13 percent to $62.555 million in the first half from $49.339 million a year ago.