The CMP garment sector in Myanmar has been hit hard by the coronavirus impacts amid the global demand slump, said Myanmar Garment Manufacturers Association (MGMA).

The import of CMP raw materials declined to $2.17 billion in the past financial year 2019-2020, from $2.37 billion recorded in the 2018-2019FY, according to the Ministry of Commerce. Myanmar manufacturing sector has mostly concentrated in garment and textiles produced on the Cutting, Making, and Packing basis, and it contributes to the country’s GDP to a certain extent. At present, some CMP garment factories have shut down on the reason for the lack of raw materials due to the COVID-19 negative impacts, leaving thousands of workers unemployed. To deal with the shortage of raw materials for the CMP garment factories in Myanmar, the Ministry of Commerce, the Myanmar Garment Manufacturers Association and the Chinese Embassy in Myanmar, the China Enterprise Chamber of Commerce in Myanmar (CECCM) have jointly imported raw materials through border trade channels and airlines. However, import values of raw materials by CMP businesses in the last FY dropped by $197.7 million compared to a year-ago period.

Exports of garments manufactured under the cut-make-pack (CMP) system were valued about $4 billion around the past eleven months in the last financial year 2019-2020, said the Ministry of Commerce.