Bangladesh Eases Fumigation Requirements, Boosts U.S. Cotton Imports

The Ministry of Commerce of the Bangladesh Government has announced easing the rules for mandatory fumigation tests for importing cotton from Western Hemisphere nations or regions, particularly from the United States. Resulting clearly in the time reduction, hassles, and in turn cost of doing business for importers in Bangladesh, and in effect the competitiveness of the country's cotton industry at a time when there is a growing ambition of the country to hit USD 100 Billion exports in the coming years.

An interesting data point is that Bangladesh is the third-largest apparel import source for the USA and, that the value of USA apparel imports from Bangladesh has been gradually rising over the past 10 years. The recent growth in USA's RMG imports from Bangladesh after the pandemic is particularly commendable.

It is laudable that BGMEA is actively interacting/engaging with the American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) on varied issues to make trade between Bangladesh and the USA easier.

The MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) signed between BGMEA and AAFA to improve competitiveness and facilitate trade access to the US market is a big plus. As today Bangladesh is in a good place, the proposal to replace conventional labeling with digital labeling is also a timely idea as it will lessen manufacturing costs and ensure greater transparency and traceability of products.

Overall, it seems that The semblance is that Bangladesh is ticking boxes right at this moment building its competitiveness in the global textile industry and consolidating its leadership status and in particular trade relations with the USA.