According to Thailand’s “World Journal”, the Director of the Foreign Trade Department of the Ministry of Commerce of Thailand said that the Textile and Garment Importers Association requested the relevant US departments to review the textile and garment trade policy. Due to the unified import measures of the United States, including the imposition of high-value imports, Taxes, the establishment of import quotas, and rules on the origin of goods have all brought obstacles to the textile and garment trade.
If the U.S. government does not review its trade policy with Thailand, it will not only increase the consumption burden of U.S. families by US$800 per year, it will also affect the development of the U.S. textile industry and cause Thai exporters to suffer fierce competition in the United States. China is Thailand’s main competitor.
In 2008, the total value of textiles and garments imported by the United States from China was US$20.612 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 3.6%, and China’s market share reached 40.9%.
The director revealed that most of the U.S. export commodities are Thai products with development potential, such as underwear, pants, fleece jackets, children’s clothing, textile threads, etc.
In addition to China, Vietnam and Indonesia are also Thailand’s competitors in the United States. In 2008, Thailand’s exports of textiles and garments totaled US$7.199 billion, an increase of 3.2% year-on-year. Among them, exports to the United States ranked first, involving US$1.932 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 2%.
The director pointed out that Thai operators must be prepared to deal with the global economic recession in 2009. It is predicted that the economic recession will last 2-3 years, which will directly affect consumer purchasing power and the number of importer orders. Importers must adjust themselves to meet more intense market competition.
