Bangladesh Textile Mills Urge Govt To Mandate 70% Use Of Local Yarn
Bangladesh textile mills have urged their government to make it mandatory for fabrics and apparel manufacturers to buy cotton yarn from domestic mills due to the ongoing foreign exchange crisis.
In a letter the Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA) said that if garments are manufactured with domestic yarn, then the value addition is 65 percent, while it is just 30 percent in case of imported yarn.
“BTMA also claimed that the price difference between imported and domestic yarn is only 15-20 cents per kg as textile mills too have to import cotton,” TBS reported.
The textile body further added that their members produce cotton yarns which meet the highest standards and have the production capacity to meet 80-85 percent of the local yarn consumption.
“In an open market economy, there is no scope to make it mandatory for the garment makers to buy 70 percent of yarn from local spinning mills,” TBS quoted BGMEA President Faruque Hassan as saying.
“It is true the value addition of the garment sector has increased as we use local yarn, but it is very difficult for apparel makers to stay competitive by using local yarn due to their high prices,” he added.
