Bangladesh’s yarn consumption has doubled over the last six years. This is because of the high demand from domestic garment manufacturers and the high volume of garment exports. In fiscal 2012-13, the country’s knitters and weavers consumed 10 to 11 lakh tons of yarn. Last year, the amount was 22 lakh tons. Imports are increasing because of cheaper yarn from India and China. So the garment sector, the country’s main export earner, is depending more on imported raw materials, which is a worry for domestic spinners. So spinners have lowered their production capacity to 77 per cent from 90 per cent over the last six months.

Despite a lot of internal and external shocks, garment shipments from Bangladesh have maintained robust growth over the last seven years because of competitive prices and a flawless supply of yarn and fabrics, which has reduced lead times significantly. Bangladesh’s garment exports to new destinations such as Japan, India and China have been growing at a faster rate in comparison to traditional markets like the EU, the US and Canada. Garment exporters have been receiving a lot of work orders because of the US-China trade war that compelled many international retailers and brands to come to Bangladesh.