Published: 12:07 AM, 17 August 2026
Bangladesh's garment exports to EU fall faster than any rival's: Eurostat
Bangladesh leads the decline: RMG exports to the EU fall 16.43 percent in H1 2026, the steepest drop among all competing exporters China holds its ground: Despite an 8.88 percent fall, China remains the EU's top garment supplier by value, losing far less ground than Bangladesh Price, not volume, is the weak spot: Bangladesh actually shipped more garments by weight than China, but its lower per-kilogramme price left it trailing in value Bangladesh's ready-made garments (RMG) exports are shrinking in the European market, mirroring the slide already under way in the United States.
Fresh data from the EU's statistical office, Eurostat, shows no other exporting nation has lost as much ground in the bloc this year.
Bangladesh shipped garments worth €8.64 billion to the 27-nation EU bloc between January and June, a 16.43 percent fall from the same period last year, the steepest drop among all competing exporters.
Turkey posted the next sharpest decline at 14.60 percent, while India and Pakistan slid around 12.5 percent each.
Vietnam was the lone outlier, edging up 0.36 percent even as the wider market contracted.
The picture becomes sharper set against China's performance.
China continues to dominate the EU's garment import market by a wide margin, shipping garments worth €11.82 billion in the same period, but even Beijing's exports fell, by 8.88 percent.
The gap is telling: EU buyers cut back on garment purchases across the board, but trimmed orders from China only modestly, while slashing orders from Bangladesh by nearly double the average decline.
For an industry where market share often shifts on wafer-thin price and lead-time differences, that gap signals Bangladesh losing competitiveness against its biggest rival, not just facing weaker global demand.
Garments remain Bangladesh's dominant export earner, making up more than 80 percent of the country's total export income, a concentration that leaves the economy especially exposed when key markets soften simultaneously.
The US alone contributes roughly 20 percent of that income, while Europe's markets together account for more than 60 percent, meaning a downturn on both fronts at once compounds the pressure rather than allowing one market to offset losses in the other.
Asked why the country had fallen further than any rival, Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) Executive President Fazlee Shamim Ehsan told bdnews24.com on Saturday night that the overall export climate remained weak.
"Our garment exports fell by around 2 percent in the last fiscal year. Global conditions aren't favourable, and things aren't good on the domestic front either, with gas and power shortages among other problems. I can't say how the coming days will unfold under these circumstances."
He pointed to three factors behind the EU decline: falling consumer demand for garments in the bloc, aggressive Chinese marketing capturing orders, and buyers shifting orders to India following its free trade agreement with the EU, an arrangement that gives Indian exporters a duty advantage Bangladesh does not enjoy in that market.
Bangladesh's slump extends beyond Europe too.
The country shipped $4 billion worth of garments to the US in the first half of 2026, down 5.75 percent from the same period last year, according to figures released on Aug 6 by the Office of Textiles and Apparel (OTEXA), under the US Department of Commerce.
Rivals fared better in the same market: Vietnam's exports rose 1.08 percent, Cambodia's jumped 12.32 percent, and Indonesia's grew 3.40 percent, underlining that buyers are actively diversifying sourcing rather than simply cutting orders across the board.
VIETNAM HOLDS EDGE:
Behind China and Bangladesh, the EU's top garment suppliers are Turkey, India, Vietnam, Cambodia, Pakistan, Morocco, Sri Lanka and Indonesia.
Turkey shipped garments worth €3.75 billion in the January-June period, down 14.60 percent, while India followed with €2.36 billion, down 12.49 percent.
Among the top 10 exporters, Vietnam posted the smallest decline of all, at just 0.36 percent, shipping garments worth €2.07 billion to the EU in the first half of the year.
Cambodia's exports fell 8.84 percent, Morocco's 6.65 percent, Sri Lanka's 11.21 percent and Indonesia's 14.20 percent.
REASON BEHIND SLIDE:
Although China outstrips Bangladesh in export value, it trails in export volume.
China shipped 59.62 million kg of garments to the EU in the first half of the year, against Bangladesh's 62.30 million kg, itself down 8.22 percent from a year earlier.
China's volume slipped by a comparatively modest 2.57 percent.
Bangladesh's disadvantage against China lies chiefly in price.
China exported garments at an average €19.83 per kg in the January-June period, against Bangladesh's €13.88 per kg, itself down nearly 9 percent from the same period last year.
China's per-kg price fell 6.48 percent.
Turkey, Vietnam and Cambodia, by contrast, saw their per-kg export prices rise over the same period, while India's fell 2.31 percent.
Ehsan said China's aggressive push into the EU market had come with state backing.
"When China began aggressive marketing in the EU, their state supported them. Here, with banks in poor shape, many factories couldn't get support and either shut down or stopped exporting.
"On top of that, rising business costs left no room to offer buyers lower prices than the Chinese."
"Taken together, we're falling behind," he said.
