|
Clothing, shoe exports hit skids
Apparel and footwear export turnover for the first five months of the year decreased from the same period last year due to impacts from the ongoing global financial crisis, according to the General Statistics Office.
Product demands in major markets such as the US and the EU have sharply reduced in the wake of the economic slowdown.
In contrast to previous optimism that apparel exports would increase, the industry’s export turnover in May decreased 11 per cent from the same period last year.
Including the reduction in May, the industry’s export turnover was posted at US$3.24 billion, equivalent to roughly 28 per cent of the industry’s annual export turnover for the first five months of the year. Export turnover for the textile and garment industry is expected to be more than $9.5 billion, $5 billion from the US market alone this year.
In early May, industry insiders had forecast that apparel exports would increase in May due to newly received export contracts.
Deputy general secretary of the Viet Nam Textile and Apparel Association (Vitas) Nguyen Son said that apparel exporters recently started to recruit new workers again after months of cutting staff.
According to Vitas, the output of fabric made from cotton and of other types of apparel increased 3 per cent and 8 per cent, respectively, in May.
US Customs statistics also showed that the market share of Vietnamese apparel in the US surged from 3.4 per cent in the first quarter last year to 4.74 per cent in Q1 this year.
As for the footwear industry, many enterprises have opted for moderate manufacturing due to a lack of orders. Imported raw materials for production in May dropped by 16 per cent.
As a result, the footwear industry’s export turnover from January-May reached only $1.6 billion, down 10 per cent year-on-year.
In an effort to boost exports, apparel and footwear enterprises are searching for more export contracts and actively managing their source of raw materials to improve the stability of the industry’s development for the coming years.
The two industries have also turned to the domestic market to offset the export reductions they are facing. The industries have launched promotion programmes within the domestic market via both wholesale and retail distribution channels and at supermarkets all over the country.
According to Vitas statistics, Viet Nam’s apparel industry gained $2.6 billion from exports in the first four months of the year, up 2 per cent year-on-year, due to a sharp increase in export volume to markets including China and other countries in Southeast Asia.
Vitas forecast that export turnover of apparel in the first half of this year would be the same as last year, but that apparel exporters should focus on searching for new markets.
vietnamnews
|
