The Thai Garment Industry Association is optimistic that exports will improve in the second half of this year, making up for the impact of the sluggish exports in the first half of the year, so that there will be no negative growth in exports throughout the year. In the first five months of this year, garment exports shrank by 7.13%.
Tawang, chairman of the Thai Garment Industry Association, said that the total export value of garments and textiles in the first five months of this year was US$2 billion, a decrease of 7.13% compared with the same period last year. Thailand’s major export markets for garments and textiles, such as the United States, Europe, and Japan, have all shrunk because the economies of trading partners have not yet recovered. However, exports are expected to improve in the second half of the year, as November and December are the peak season for the fashion industry. After exports improved in the second half of the year, the export value for the whole year this year was the same as last year.
Tawang pointed out that Thailand’s garment and textile industry is currently undergoing large-scale adjustments. Since the garment and textile industry is a labor-intensive industry, some manufacturers have moved their production bases to Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam (CLMV). , to avoid being affected by the rising labor costs in Thailand, prompting Thai operators to focus on cultivating labor skills and technological substitution, and increasing the introduction of machinery and other technologies to replace labor.
Tawang revealed that Thailand should combine the advantages of upstream and downstream industries, and use Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam as sewing bases to transform into a garment and textile trade center in the ASEAN region, focusing on improving production technology and product design creativity. To enable Thailand to compete in the international market.
On the other hand, the Thai Garment Industry Association, in cooperation with Reed Tradex and Tainachan Bank, will hold the “GFT & GMS 2015” exhibition at the Bangkok International Exhibition and Convention Center (BITEC) from 9 to 12 of this month, where ready-made garments will be displayed. As well as production machinery, equipment and raw materials for the textile industry, more than 250 brands from 25 countries around the world will participate in the exhibition, and financial institutions will provide preferential loan programs at the venue to increase manufacturers’ purchasing power and reduce costs. The focus of this event is to showcase new production technologies, reduce labor costs and improve production efficiency. Business matching activities will be held, and manufacturers from China and Taiwan will also participate in the matching activities. Thailand’s garment exports shrank by 7.13% in the first five months