Apparel shipments from Bangladesh to USA, which is a major apparel export bastion for Bangladesh, crossed the pre-pandemic levels (in 2019 Bangladesh earned US $ 5.92 billion in apparel export to USA) in 2021 despite the pandemic even as Bangladesh earned US $ 7.14 billion from apparel exports to USA last year.
Media reports maintained this citing OTEXA (an affiliate of the US Department of Commerce), according to which apparel exports to the US were 36.69 per cent higher than that of the 2020 earnings.
Meanwhile, speaking to the media, BGMEA President Faruque Hassan, reportedly, maintained US’ overall apparel imports increased and so did garment exports from Bangladesh even as the former President of Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA), Fazlul Hoque, underlined the demand from US buyers for the knit items went up between the end of 2020 and the beginning of 2021.
