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Garments and textiles lead exports in Q1
Garments and textiles retained their role as Vietnam’s leading exports in the first quarter of 2012, with export earnings reaching US$3.2 billion, a year-on-year increase of 15.4 percent.
In March alone, garment exports earned US$1.15 billion, which was more than in the previous month and the only item fetching more than US$1 billion in export revenue.
According to Dang Phuong Dung, Vice Chairwoman and Secretary General of the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS), the garment and textile sector is still likely to face challenges in next quarters due to economic difficulties that have lowered demand in major markets.
However, she said, the sector’s export growth will be still high in the second and third quarters of this year as this period is the peak season for garment exports. Last year, garment businesses received plenty of export orders during that time, Dung added.
Local garment exporters have already signed several big contracts for the second and third quarters and are hopeful about reaching their targets.
It’s worth noting that the US$300 million LuxFashion project by Lifepro Vietnam Joint-Venture Company, which comprises 11 closed-circuit garment complexes, is now operational in the northern province of Ninh Binh. This is the largest and most modern textile-dying-industrial garment production line in Vietnam and it is expected to contribute to higher export revenues in the future.
Lifepro Vietnam’s main products include mass-produced fashion clothing, jeans, sportswear, and technical and protective clothing.
The company shipped its first five batches of goods to Europe on March 30 and it has signed a US$137 million contract with the US Globe Manufacturing Company LLC to supply protective clothing for American firefighters.
This is a positive sign for the garment sector to achieve its set target of US$16 billion in export earnings this year.
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