Several Indian brands, including NSL, are
exploring tie-ups with garment-makers in Bangladesh by bringing fabrics
from India,’ a Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters’
Association (BGMEA) official told the New Age newspaper”.Since the
Bangladeshi garment industry enjoys duty-free imports of fabrics, there
is attraction for Indian brands for importing Bangladeshi shirts made
of imported fabrics ..Meanwhile, Bangladeshi garment makers are
upbeat about the Indian market, but want the government to persuade New
Delhi to remove what they call ‘para-tariffs’ ..Former BGMEA
president Anwar Ul Alam Chowdhury said for years Indian brands had been
interested in buying formal shirts and trousers from Bangladesh but
‘some import hassles’ discouraged them ..’India is a huge market.
Brands there are interested about Bangladeshi garments. If the
government works with Indian authorities to remove para- tariff barriers
including unnecessary delays in clearing shipments, Bangladesh’s
garment exports to India will get a boost,’ the BGMEA official said ..A
latest report by Bangladesh’s Export Promotion Bureau says that garment
exports to India has started increasing in recent times ..Industry sources told the New Age that exports of certain quantity of duty-free garments are gaining markets in India ..In
the fiscal year 2009-10, garment export to India amounted to $13
million with an 18 percent growth over the year. Two years back, in the
2007-08 fiscal year, garment export to India was less than $5 million ..’Still
Bangladesh’s garment export to India is very tiny if compared to the
$12.5 billion worth of annual garment shipments that are mainly destined
for the US and EU markets. But India’s potential is huge,’ the official
said ..India’s domestic apparel market is worth $35 billion with $2 billion market for shirts ..Bangladeshi
shirt-makers can take a significant portion of the Indian market pie as
they have experience in catering to western brands like Wal-Mart,
H&M and JC Penney, the official said .
Date:9/2/2010
Source:www.commodityonline.com