Vietnam's Apparel Exports to US Up 20.6 per cent in Q1

Vietnam was estimated to have gained US$927.85 million from shipment of garment and textile exports to the US in the first quarter this year, up 20.59 per cent on-year, the latest statistics released by the US showed.

 

The slight growth of apparel products was blamed for the US’s monitoring mechanism. Among the eight categories under the US supervision, knitted T-shirts for males and females posted the highest growth of 30.61 per cent. .

 

The figures proved that Vietnam did not dump its apparel products in the US market and the monitoring mechanism is completely unreasonable, said Diep Thanh Kiet, vice chairman of Ho Chi Minh City garment and textile, embroidering and weaving association.

 

Currently, Vietnam accounts for mere 3 per cent of the US’s annual apparel imports, and is not a threat to the US textile and garment industry, Kiet noted, adding most of Vietnamese products shipped to the US are ready-made garments that factories in the US no longer make.

 

If the US Department of Commerce (DOC) makes any negative judgment on the Vietnam apparels, about 50 per cent and 80 per cent of Vietnamese garment companies may face the bankruptcy threats.

 

However, the General Statistics Office (GSO) statistics showed that Vietnam earned US$1.6 billion from shipment of apparel exports, up 30 per cent on year.

 

The country’s textile and garment industry will gain US$6.5 billion from apparel exports this year, compared with its initial target of US$7.35 billion, due to the impact of the US apparel monitoring program. (Tuoi Tre Online, GSO March 2007)