CPD RMG Study Stitching a better future for Bangladesh
Every day, CPD RMG Study team reveals what’s on our economic and apparel radar and curates a selection of the best reports, opinion, and analysis you may have missed
EU brands cheerful about local denim
European retailers and brands are upbeat on Bangladeshi value added denim garments due to the high quality of the apparel at competitive prices, English language daily the Daily Star reported.
The report quoted some brand representatives who take part in Bangladesh Denim Expo. The report said that by 2020, the global denim market will reach $64.1 billion, while Bangladesh’s denim export is forecasted to reach $7 billion by the end of 2021.
Tofail requests buyers to raise apparel prices
Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed on Wednesday said global buyers had not raised garment prices, although entrepreneurs invested significantly in fixing factory flaws in the post-Rana period, English language daily The Financial Express reported,
“But they (buyers) are now bargaining to lower the product prices instead,” he said.
He made the remarks while inaugurating ‘Sustainable Apparel Forum (SAF)’ and ‘Bangladesh Denim Expo’ organised by Bangladesh Apparel Exchange (BAE) in the city’s International Convention City Bashundhara (ICCB).It revealed that one of the tags, taken from a polo shirt of a US retailer, shows a retail price of $42 (Tk3,475) even though the item cost only around $3.30 (Tk273) from its manufacturer in Bangladesh.
Industry’s contribution to GDP up
Overall industry’s contribution to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is estimated to be enhanced in the ongoing fiscal year (FY17), English language daily the Financial Express reported.
The report said that the provisional estimation to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) shows that broader industry’s contribution to GDP stands at 32.48 per cent in the current fiscal year which was 31.54 per cent in the past fiscal year.
Replying to a question on $9.1bn estimated illicit financial outflows from Bangladesh in 2014, NBR Chairman on Wednesday said: “We are examining the GFI report on money laundering though there are questions about the methodology of the report which did not clearly mention the sources of information.”
The government plans to increase the food subsidy by around 32 percent to Tk 3,721 crore in the revised budget for the outgoing fiscal year, English language daily the Daily Star reported.
The report also said that the government also wants to increase the food subsidy to Tk 4,000 in the new budget for the next fiscal year, according to the plan of the finance ministry.
