Outbound shipments of locally manufactured garments and textiles went up by 5.1 per cent to $1.39 billion in the first half of the year from $1.32 billion a year ago. This represented a slowdown from the double-digit growth recorded in the first quarter.
Data from the Garments and Textile Export Board (GTEB) showed that garment and textile exports in June barely grew by 0.6 per cent to $257.447 million from the year-ago figure of $255.994 million.
The GTEB attributed the slowdown in garment and textile exports to sluggish consumer demand due to the severe acute respiratory syndrome, the US war with Iraq and the very competitive environment in the country’s major markets.
According to the GTEB, shipments to traditional quota countries increased by 6.15 per cent to $1.228 billion in the first semester from $1.157 billion a year earlier.
