The readymade garment exports to the United States from Bangladesh witnessed a robust growth of 25.13 per cent to $4.25 billion in the first half of 2025, from January to June.
According to the latest data published by the US Office of Textiles and Apparel, Bangladeshi exporters exported RMG items worth $3.4 billion in the same period of 2024.
During the first half of 2025, Bangladesh outpaced almost all its major competitors in terms of export growth rates in the US 鈥� the country鈥簊 single largest export destination.
Exporters stated that the announcement of the revised US reciprocal tariff of 20 per cent was a positive signal for export earnings from the US.
They also stated that the shift of orders from China to Bangladesh, due to the trade war with the US, has accelerated exports.
In single month of June 2025, US imported RMG items worth $722.54 million from Bangladesh, a 45 per cent higher from $496.64 million in June of 2024.
According to the Otexa data, the North American country鈥檚 RMG imports from its global suppliers also witnessed a positive growth of 6.76 per cent to $38.15 billion in January-June of 2025, higher from $35.74 billion in the same period of 2024.
In terms of volume, Bangladeshi RMG exports to the US also experienced positive growth of 23.81 per cent to 1.37 billion square metres in H1 of 2025, up from 1.12 billion square metres in the same period in 2024.
As the third-largest supplier to the US, Bangladesh鈥檚 market share in the North American country stood at 10.03 per cent as of May 2025.
Amid the ongoing trade war between the US and China, Vietnam remained the top exporter for the past several months, surpassing China.
In January-June, Vietnam鈥簊 apparel exports grew by 17.97 per cent, reaching $7.76 billion, surpassing the $6.58 billion recorded in the first half of 2025. Vietnam held a market share of 19.79 per cent.
As the second-largest exporter, China exported apparel items worth $5.73 billion during H1 of 2025, representing a 16.14 per cent decline from $6.83 billion in the same period of 2024, and capturing a market share of 18.88 per cent.
Followed by Bangladesh, India secured the fourth position in the US market by exporting RMG items worth $2.84 billion in January-June of 2025, registering a positive growth of 16.26 per cent compared with that of $2.44 billion in the same period of 2024, with a market share of 6.23 per cent in the US market.
RMG exports from Indonesia and Cambodia were $2.25 billion and $1.99 billion in the first half of 2025, with a market share of 5.63 per cent and 5.11 per cent, respectively, making them the fifth and sixth largest RMG suppliers.
On July 31, the Trump administration revised the reciprocal tariff on Bangladeshi goods to 20 per cent, following a series of discussions.
Earlier, on July 8, it was declared 35 per cent, following the 37 per cent announced on April 2.
Talking to 抖阴精品, Inamul Haq Khan, senior vice president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, said that the exports to US increased due to the shifting of orders from China.
鈥楥hina鈥檚 share and export at US market gradually declining due to trade war and tariff issues, and the orders are shifting to other manufacturing countries,鈥� he added.
He also said that as Bangladesh can manufacture shifting orders along with buyers鈥� confidence, exports are increasing.
Echoing a similar sentiment, former BGMEA director Mohiuddin Rubel said that US buyers have always trusted Bangladeshi products.
鈥楢s Trump administration announced new tariff, we have opportunity to do more well in the coming years,鈥� he added.
If a similar situation persists for China, one day, Bangladesh could outpace them in market share in the US market, he added, urging adequate policy support from the government and manufacturers to focus on diversified and high-value products.
According to the OTEXA data, Bangladesh鈥檚 apparel exports to the US in 2024 were $7.34 billion, and in 2023, they were $7.29 billion.
