At a press conference in the country, Cao Huu Hieu, Director, Vietnam Textile and Garment Group (Vinatex) said, Vietnam’s textiles and garments exports to the US and EU dropped significantly in 2023 as consumers curtailed spending on discretionary items including textiles and garments. 

This led to a sharp drop of 10 per cent in the export turnover in the industry, added Hieu According to him, geopolitical instability and rising inflation caused immense difficulties for the textile and garment industry in 2023 as order prices dropped by over 30 per cent for small quantities and 50 per cent for large quantity items. 

Rising labor costs and depreciating currency rates of other countries also made Vietnam’s textile and garment exports uncompetitive, he adds. 

Currently, Vietnam is the second largest wage payer in the industry with wages rising to $330 per month compared to $420 per month in China.

Wages in the country are three times higher than that in Bangladesh, over two times higher than India, 1.8 times higher than Cambodia.

The VND exchange rate also remained stable during the first eight months of the year while the Chinese Yuan depreciated by 5 per cent, Bangladeshi Taka fell 5.9 per cent and Turkish Lira dropped 31 per cent.