|
|
|
  |
| Sunday, 24 April 2005 |
 |
|
 |
Business |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
|
Low cost
Chinese products hits Lanka's apparel exports
by Hiran H. Senewiratne Sri Lanka's apparel exports are heading for a crisis due to low cost Chinese products entering the USA and EU markets with the termination of the Multifibre Agreement (MFA) with USA in January this year. This has had an impact on the country's garment sector to a large extent, Central Bank (CB), sources said. At present, China has cut down cost of garment products by 46 per cent on exports to penetrate into the lucrative US and European markets. This will have a negative impact towards the industry in the future, the CB Deputy Director-Economic Research S. Lankathilaka said. The Central Bank has already spoken to major garment manufacturers on this issue and they are now in the process of restructuring their factories to face future challenges, Lankathilaka said. In January/February there was a drop in raw materials imports used in the garment industry. However, the CB says that it has no link to it . Lankathilaka said that entering niche markets in USA and European Union (EU) is the only alternative to face this crisis. The US government is also grumbling over this issue by slamming China that it is violating intellectual property rights. According to the New York Times there has been a 1,200 per cent increase in Chinese garments in the first quarter of the year to the USA. This has created a trade imbalance in the US economy. The US and EU recently took measures to limit surging textile exports from China that have flooded global markets, with the abolishing of the MFA in January 1, the New York Times reported. The Export Development Board (EDB) predicted that Sri Lanka's apparel sector will also be affected within a few months due to flooding of low cost Chinese exports in the USA and EU markets. We need to take steps with immediate effect to combat the situation, EDB Chairman Rohantha Athukorala said. He said that Sri Lanka could face these challenges by projecting the international image of local garments as an ethical manufacturer. Athukorala said that the EDB is now in the process of positioning the industry globally based on areas including intellectual property rights, sweat shopping, child labour, empowerment and equal opportunity. He said that the EDB will invite a prestigious "Drapers Record" Editorial Director, Lorna Hall, to promote Sri Lanka as an ethical manufacturer. Athukorala said that Lorna Hall will visit a cross section of apparel sector companies in the country for this purpose.This magazine is being read by over 60,000 top end apparel opinion leaders in the world. |
|
| News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security
| Produced by Lake House |
