Vietnam’s earnings from garment and textile exports in the first quarter of this year were 11.2 per cent higher than in the same period last year. The textile and garment industry has been improving and catering to the requirements of global value chains. Productivity has improved thanks to the renovation of machines and equipment and the closure of factories with outdated technologies and those that consume a lot of power. Enterprises are being repositioned. Units are using few workers and high-productivity machines. The product structure has been adjusted to choose enterprises with higher added value.

The weakness of the textile industry is lack of input materials. If Vietnamese enterprises make input materials, their products would be able to replace Chinese products and can compete with Chinese products in price. In current conditions, however, it is easier and faster to seek input materials from China than domestic sources. This is because China organizes large-scale production and always has large stocks, while Vietnam only makes products to order.

Vietnam’s textile and apparel sector has set a target of seven per cent growth over 2016. Currently, Vietnamese garment and textile products are available in 40 countries and territories around the world, with major markets including the United States, Japan, the Republic of Korea, China and the EU.