Apparel exports to the EU fell by $640 million

Bangla Press Desk: During July-May of the current fiscal year, apparel exports to the European Union were $17.36 billion. This is $640 million less than the same period of the previous fiscal year.
According to the Export Promotion Bureau, Bangladesh's ready-made garment exports to the European Union declined in the first 11 months of the 2025-26 fiscal year. Despite a strong recovery in May, overall demand in this market is indicating a decline.
Earlier, Bangladesh's exports to the EU were good in the 2024-25 fiscal year. That year, exports increased by 9.1 percent to $19.71 billion.
However, industry sources say that the growth was mainly due to higher prices, not an increase in the volume of purchase orders. The overall slowdown did not stop even after the recovery in May. Exports increased from $1.52 billion in April to $1.82 billion in May. This is a month-on-month growth of 19.6 percent. This is the second highest monthly income of the current fiscal year after $1.88 billion in January.
However, despite this recovery, exports remained below expectations for most of the year. Exports fell from $1.98 billion in July to $1.34 billion in September. They then fell again in February and March to $1.35 billion and $1.33 billion, respectively.
Alamgir Hossain, Director of the Export Promotion Bureau, said, “The decline in exports was higher in the early months of the fiscal year. However, recent data indicates a gradual recovery.
There have been signs of improvement in the EU market in recent months. We expect this positive trend to continue for the rest of the fiscal year if the demand situation remains stable.”
Exports to Germany rose to $409.3 million in May from $316.2 million in April. However, exports are still below the July peak of $471.8 million; this suggests that demand has not yet returned to its previous level.
About 22.5 percent of Bangladesh’s total garment exports to the European Union went to Germany in May. Spain retained its position as the second largest destination. The country exported $300.1 million worth of clothing in May, slightly more than the $285.5 million in April.

BP/TD