The exports of garments and textiles from Vietnam have reached US$ 4.2 billion during the first quarter of the current year, registering a year-on-year rise of 16 percent, according to the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS). Vietnam's apparel and textile exports to traditional markets like Japan, Europe, the US and Russia is rising in a stable manner, while some firms also gained entry into new markets like Africa, Middle East, South Korea and Turkey, VITAS Vice-President Dang Phuong Dung said. According to Ms. Dung, some clothing and textile firms have bagged export orders to last them until June. She said the Vietnamese textile and garment industry is very optimistic about tapping a 12-15 percent growth this year, with its turnover reaching US$ 18.8 billion to 19.3 billion.
Last year, the industry registered a turnover of US$ 17.2 billion, growing at 8.5 percent year-on-year. Meanwhile, Vietnam National Textile and Garment Group Deputy General Director Le Tien Troung said the rising cost of input, particularly the cost of energy, can push up the prices of Vietnamese textile and garment products, and impact the sector's competitiveness. Hence, there is a need for the industry to reduce the cost of raw inputs and energy, while trying to enhance its labour productivity, he suggested. According to experts, to improve their growth prospects, Vietnamese clothing and textile enterprises should try to substitute imported raw materials for production with domestically produced raw inputs. Presently, locally produced raw material accounts for only about 48-50 percent of the total inputs used by the Vietnamese garment and textile industry, compared to the use of around 90 percent local raw materials by countries like India and China. The garment and textile sector in Vietnam employs more than 2 million workers, and another 200,000 jobs are likely to be added this year, according to industry analysts.
