The European Union’s total apparel imports fell to €13.83 billion in January-February of this year, down 11.27% from the same months of previous year.
However, during the first two months of 2026, clothing exports from Bangladesh to the EU have fallen faster at 19.26% year on year to €2.89 billion from €3.57 billion.
Analysts say that this negative trend in the European market is a message of concern not only for one country, but also for global apparel exporters.
Former BGMEA director Mohiuddin Rubel said that not only Bangladesh, but other countries including China, Turkey, Vietnam, India, Pakistan and Cambodia are also facing pressures in the EU market.
According to statistics, two major reasons are responsible behind the decline in the value of EU garment imports.
Firstly, the volume of imports has decreased by 6.23% and secondly the average unit price by volume too has slipped by 5.38%.
This means that European buyers are not only buying less clothing, but also buying products at lower prices.
Sector stakeholders say that price pressure in the European market has now become the biggest challenge for Bangladesh, since international buyers want to buy products at lower prices than before.
“This has increased production costs, but exporters are forced to supply products at lower prices,” Dhaka Tribune reported.
However, the world’s largest garment exporter, China, has exported garments worth €4.20 billion to the EU in January to February period, up 4.01% year on year.
But China has been able to increase its volume by just 1.34%, while China has had to reduce its unit price by 5.27%.
On the other hand, Turkey’s exports have suffered the biggest blow. Its garment exports to the EU have decreased by 22.91%, to reach €1.20 billion.
Although Vietnam is in a relatively stable position, they have also not been able to avoid negative growth. The country’s exports have decreased by 2.06%, with total exports standing at €711.73 million.
Image courtesy: IFC
