According to a latest research report, if Japan shifts 1/3 of its textile and garment purchases from China to other countries, European and American garment buyers may face rising costs when purchasing from Bangladesh and Southeast Asia.
Clothesource*, a British garment trade consulting company, pointed out that although the uncertainty of China’s Asian trading rivals in receiving garment orders will increase in the short term, it will take some time to achieve substantial growth in export trade to Japan, but this new business opportunity has already A vision of possible profit for many Asian manufacturers.
Following the recent statement by the head of the International Textile and Garment Office of the Ministry of Economy, Trade, Industry and Industry (METI) that Japan will reduce the market ratio of imported textiles and garments from China to 50% from the current 77%, media comments followed one after another. The CEO of Clothesource said that if the news is true, no matter how long the current recession lasts, it will change the profitability of many garment manufacturers in Bangladesh and Southeast Asia. In the latest edition of the article “The Source, its review of sourcing trends”, Clothesource analyzed the background factors of Japan’s news.
The CEO of Clothesource pointed out that Japan’s garments are almost entirely dependent on imports, 93% of which are imported from China, and only 7% are imported from Southeast Asia or Bangladesh and other countries that have concluded or are negotiating with Japan to exempt garment import tariffs. Shifting 1/3 of garment imports to these countries may mean that these countries’ garment exports to Japan will increase by 400%, and their total garment sales may double. The report also analyzes how easily government decisions can affect Japanese garment buyers, and how much time Asian manufacturers must spend to improve product standards that meet the needs of Japanese buyers.
The CEO of Clothesource pointed out that Cambodian manufacturers have learned that Japanese buyers require twice the number of online production supervisors as European and American buyers require, which will increase costs and take time to improve operations. Japan will not help Asian manufacturers facing declining orders from Europe and the United States in 2009. But for those manufacturers that can survive 2009 and reach the product level required by Japan, the next few years will indeed be profitable. At least some manufacturers in Thailand, Cambodia, Indonesia, and Bangladesh can withstand the risk of reduced orders from Europe and the United States
*Note: Clothesource is a British consulting company that specializes in collecting garment trade information. It provides quality control and market information on garment procurement, import and export business for world-renowned garment brands, retailers, and traders.
