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Bangladesh's ready-made garment (RMG) export to the United Kingdom has witnessed double-digit year-on-year negative growth during the first quarter of the current calendar year of 2024.
It fetched £616.38 million from RMG exports to the UK during January-March 2024, which was £806.88 million during the corresponding period of 2023, according to UK official data.
RMG exporters said overall import to the UK fell during the period in question due to global economic slowdown, while Bangladesh lagged behind from its competitors due to long lead time and customs procedure.
The UK's total apparel imports in the first three months of 2024 stood at £2.38 billion, which was 20.76-per cent lower than that of £3.0 billion earnings during the same period of 2023, according to data.
In the first quarter, data shows, in terms of value, Bangladesh became the top clothing exporter to the UK followed by China, Turkey, India and Pakistan.
In 2023, according to data, China fetched £3.02 billion and Bangladesh fetched £2.78 billion from garment exports to the UK.
During January-March 2024, the UK imported £601.51 million of apparel items from China, which was also 14.37-per cent lower than the 2023 first quarter's import of £702.49 million.
Turkey, India and Pakistan recorded over 20-, 29- and 18-per cent negative growth in the first quarter of 2024 and fetched £215.87, £201.36 and £139.26 million respectively.
When asked, Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) executive president Mohammad Hatem attributed high production cost, fuelled by a hike in utility prices and wage, to this growth.
"High lead time is one of the major reasons Bangladesh lags behind its competitors," he said, adding that competitors like China and Vietnam managed to reduce the negative growth rate unlike Bangladesh.
Due to power-gas crisis, they could not utilise full production capacity and also could not get raw materials timely resulting in 20-25 additional days to produce goods and make shipments.
"Currently, we need 70 to 90 days of lead time, which was 50 days," Mr Hatem told the FE on Saturday.
Besides, they could not receive orders at the prices buyers were offering mainly because of high production costs followed by gas-electricity price rises, resulting in a hike in the prices of accessories too.
The BKMEA leader also held customs harassment responsible for negative growth, claiming that they faced difficulties in making timely shipments and importing raw materials.
Not only in the UK, has Bangladesh recorded negative growth in the US and the EU too, he said, adding that these are the real scenario, although there is growth in the export data of the Export Promotion Bureau.
Bangladesh also recorded more than 17-per cent negative growth to US, its single-largest export destination, and fetched $1.75 billion during January-March 2024, according to US official data.