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Bangladesh's readymade garment (RMG) exports to the European Union (EU) during the first half (H1) of 2025 witnessed 17.87 per cent growth, earning 10.29 billion euros.
In the same period last year, RMG exports to the EU fetched 8.73 billion euros, according to the Eurostat data released on Monday.
Of the 10.29-billion-euro earnings in H1 of this year, knitwear shipments rose by 21.1 per cent to 6.03 billion euros and woven garments by 13.6 per cent to 4.26 billion euros.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh's major competitors, including China, Cambodia, and India, also sustained higher growth of 22.3 per cent, 30.4 per cent, and 15.4 per cent, respectively, in apparel shipments to the EU from January to June of this year.
Exporters and insiders said the higher growth indicates the EU demand for garments is increasing and the market situation has improved, while concerns remain over growing competition among the major apparel producers in Asia due to the latest US imposition of reciprocal tariffs.
They said due to the high US tariffs imposed on India and China, the two major producers are expanding their concentration in the EU market to offset the losses in the US.
The EU imported apparels worth 11.26 billion euros from China between January and June of 2025, while Cambodia's exports to the 27-nation bloc stood at 2.07 billion euros in this period, according to the Eurostat data.
The EU's overall apparel imports increased to 43.39 billion euros during these six months from 38.64 billion euros in the same period of 2024.
Knitwear led the gains in this period with 14.7 per cent rise to 21.87 billion euros, while woven apparels' imports grew by 10 per cent to 21.51 billion euros.
Fazlul Hoque, former president of the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA), said the overall growth indicates an improved EU market as almost all major producing countries sustained double-digit growth.
Bangladesh could have done better if some internal issues were resolved, he said, explaining that a good number of factories were shut, while other bottlenecks, including banking complexities, stifled further growth.
Talking to The Financial Express on Tuesday, Mr Hoque, also the managing director of Plummy Fashions, said due to the trade and tariff tension between China and the US, the former is losing its American market share.
"China is desperately enhancing its focus on the EU and will continue to do the same in future," he said.
India would also follow suit, which would create fierce market competition, he noted.
The EU's garment imports from India increased by 15.4 per cent to 2.70 billion euros in the January-June period of 2025, data showed.
Pakistan's exports grew by 16.6 per cent to 1.86 billion euros during this period, while Vietnam sustained a strong double-digit growth of 17.3 per cent, fetching 2.02 billion euros.
In contrast, Turkey, traditionally an important supplier to the EU due to its geographical proximity, was the only major exporter that recorded negative growth of 7.0 per cent in this period, earning 4.27 billion euros.
Bangladesh's apparel exports to the US, its single-largest market, recorded a robust 25.13 per cent growth and fetched $4.25 billion in the first half of this year, according to OTEXA, an affiliate of the US Department of Commerce.
Bangladesh earned $3.39 billion in the same period of 2024.
munni_fe@yahoo.com