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Spinning mill owners warned of an indefinite shutdown of all mills from February 1 if the Ministry of Commerce does not implement its recommendation to withdraw the bond facility on the import of 10–30 count cotton yarn within the next seven days.
They also demanded incentives or equivalent policy support for domestically produced yarn to help local mills survive amid rising costs and unfair competition from subsidised imports.
The warning came from an emergency press conference organised by the Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA) at its office in Dhaka on Thursday.
Showkat Aziz Russell, president of the BTMA, announced the demands while other leaders of the association spoke at the event.
BTMA leaders said the Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission had recommended withdrawing the bond facility on 10–30 count cotton yarn, as domestic mills can fully meet the demand.
However, the recommendation has not yet been implemented.
Failure to act could trigger a severe crisis in the spinning and primary textile sector, they warned.
Mill owners said any labour unrest resulting from closures would be the government’s responsibility.
They also cautioned that mills would soon be unable to service bank loans, posing risks to the banking sector.
Mr Russell said the industry is under intense pressure due to misuse of bond facilities, high gas and electricity tariffs, elevated bank interest rates, reduced cash incentives and depreciation of taka.
He added that duty-free yarn imports from neighbouring countries offering capital subsidies and low-cost power have made local mills uncompetitive.
“Those mills export yarn to Bangladesh below production cost,” he said.
Nearly 60 spinning mills have already shut down, while operating mills run at around 50 per cent capacity, leaving yarn worth Tk 125 billion unsold.
Withdrawal of the bond facility would not impose new duties, as exporters remain eligible for duty drawback.
BTMA urged the government to implement the recommendation immediately and provide incentive support for domestic yarn to protect investment, jobs, and export competitiveness ahead of Bangladesh’s LDC graduation.
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