The current economic turmoil has begun to affect the world, and at the same time it has affected the textile and clothing export business of most countries. But there is one country that seems to be outperforming this trend, and that is Indonesia. Indonesia’s garment exports are developing rapidly and currently constitute 60% of Indonesia’s textile industry exports.
In 2008, the investment in the garment industry was huge, reaching US$363 million. The growth rate is expected to reach 11.4% in 2008 and 10% in 2009. Clothing exports are expected to reach US$6.4 billion by the end of the year, compared with US$5.82 billion in 2007.
Clothing exports will grow faster and will be greater than the expected 8% growth rate of the textile industry. Exports are expected to reach $10.8 billion, up from $10.3 billion in 2007. Although major textile companies have significantly reduced their workforce, the garment industry has added 50,000 workers, and its number of employees reached 10 billion in 2008.
Clothing exports account for only 3-4% of global exports, ranking 11th among global exporting countries. However, if we learn from a few other Asian countries and adopt the best methods in manufacturing, Indonesian garment exports will be better in the next few years. The share of exports in the world market will increase. The biggest hindrance faced by exporters is the lack of proper communication and marketing tools, as well as a large lack of research and development, according to exporters.
The United States and the European Union are still the main markets for Indonesian clothing exports, with Russia and the Middle East as supplementary markets. The United States accounts for 26% of Indonesia’s apparel exports, followed by the European Union with 12%, ASEAN with 5%, and Japan with 3%.
