Bangladesh's US apparel exports post strong double-digit rise

Bangladesh’s apparel export to the United States, its single-largest market, continued its upward trajectory with a robust 15.14 per cent growth in the first ten months of 2025.

According to US figures, exports rose in both value and shipment volume during the January–October window. Readymade garment exports from Bangladesh brought in US$7.07 billion during the period, compared to US$6.14 billion in the same stretch of 2024, according to data released on January 08 by OTEXA of the US Department of Commerce.

This growth ran counter to the global apparel-import trend, which dipped by 0.60 per cent. Bangladesh’s performance also surpassed most key competitors except Cambodia, while Vietnam retained the top exporter position, ahead of China.

Despite global tariff disruptions, Bangladesh stayed ahead of nearly all major rivals supplying apparel to the US. However, exporters remind that OTEXA provides data with a two-month lag, and US reciprocal tariffs came into force on August 7. Earlier data from Bangladesh’s Export Promotion Bureau indicate overall exports have shown a slide for the past five months since August 2025.

Bangladesh shipped 2.27 billion square meters of garments during January–October, up from 1.96 billion square meters in the same period of 2024, marking a 15.87-per cent rise. Meanwhile, America’s overall apparel imports fell slightly to US$66.62 billion, from US$67.02 billion a year earlier.

Vietnam led US apparel suppliers with US$14.16 billion worth of exports, an 11.54-per cent increase. China dropped to second place with US$9.49 billion in shipments, a steep year-on-year decline of 32.46 per cent amid tariffs and geopolitical pressures.

Commenting on the numbers, Mohiuddin Rubel, former BGMEA Director, noted that US apparel imports fell 0.61 per cent in value and 2.24 per cent in volume, while unit prices rose 1.67 per cent. He said the figures suggest a slowing market driven by buyer caution and price optimization, despite Bangladesh’s strong performance on paper.

Rubel cautioned that forward trends may soften as inventories stabilize and competition intensifies across Asia. OTEXA’s lagged reporting also means the data trails real market movement.

Industry officials add that Bangladesh faces difficulty in the EU market due to economic strain there, while China is aggressively expanding European sales by offering lower prices to offset losses in the US.

India’s apparel exports rose 8.60 per cent to US$4.39 billion during the period, Indonesia grew 10.07 per cent to US$3.98 billion, and Cambodia posted a 25.46-per cent jump to US$4.04 billion. Pakistan registered 12.28-per cent growth with US$2.02 billion in shipments to the US.