Bangladesh’s apparel exports to the EU reportedly fell 18.89 per cent year-on-year in January-May 2026, the steepest drop among major suppliers.
The fall outpaced declines for China, India and Vietnam, signalling pressure beyond weak demand and lower prices.
Exporters face urgency to reduce reliance on the EU and US and move into higher-value and technical products.
The picture is of particular concern because many of its competitors seem to have weathered the downturn better. Reports underlined that Vietnam’s exports to the EU slipped only marginally, while China’s decline remained limited despite global headwinds. Even India’s contraction was significantly smaller than Bangladesh’s, suggesting the challenge extends beyond softer consumer demand.
Meanwhile, the US market also remained under pressure, although the setback was less severe. Apparel exports reportedly dropped 8.08 per cent during January-May, even as reports suggest that Cambodia and Vietnam outperformed Bangladesh, reinforcing concerns that buyers are increasingly sourcing from more competitive suppliers.
The latest figures also reinforce a longer-term concern. Bangladesh’s apparel exports reportedly expanded by less than 1 per cent in 2025, well below the global average, reversing the strong gains reportedly achieved a year earlier.
The industry now faces a more complex challenge than cyclical weakness. Bangladesh remains heavily dependent on the EU and US, which together reportedly account for nearly 70 per cent of apparel shipments. As the country prepares to graduate from least-developed-country status later this year, future access to the EU market will become increasingly critical.
Without securing preferential trade benefits under the EU’s Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) framework, exporters run the risk of facing average tariffs of around 12 per cent from 2027, further squeezing competitiveness.
In the US market, the challenge appears less about tariffs and more about competitiveness. The data also point to another structural weakness: export growth has increasingly relied on shipping more garments rather than commanding higher prices.
With global competition intensifying, many within the industry thus believe sustaining Bangladesh’s position in the world’s largest apparel markets will increasingly depend on moving beyond basic garments and expanding into higher-value and technical products.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DR)
