HCMC garment enterprises pin down fresh orders

Textile and garment enterprises in Ho Chi Minh City have recovered up to 80% of export orders and have high hopes for the coming months as the market returns to prosperity.

In the fourth quarter, Vietnam's textile and garment industry has seen demand picking up in both the domestic and export markets, said Pham Xuan Hong, chairman of the HCMC Textile, Embroidery, and Knitting Association (AGTEK).

"Since the beginning of the year, the industry in both the export and domestic markets has been facing difficulties as orders have continuously decreased. Overall, in the first nine months, the number of orders decreased by 20-30%. This figure has fallen to about 10% and is expected to improve," he noted at the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the association last Friday.

Regarding orders, Pham Van Viet, chairman of Viet Thang Jean Co., Ltd. (VitaJean) and vice chairman of AGTEK, said that the businesses' orders have recovered to about 80% compared to before.

Viet noted that although Vietnam's textile and garment products are highly competitive with other countries, export orders have declined, so enterprises need to promote their products to more markets.

"Currently, businesses receiving new orders because the export market is warming up again. Although the export market has not reached its target as in previous years, this provides motivation for businesses to focus on production orders for the last three months," Viet said.

Pham Quang Anh, director of Dony Garment Company, said that the business has entered markets such as Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Cambodia. These markets have stiff competition, but Vietnamese companies can still enter them because of logistics advantages.

According to Pham Xuan Hong, in order to increase textile and garment orders in the last three months of the year, Vietnamese businesses need to actively promote the conversion to green production.

To restore domestic market, textile and garment enterprises also need to understand purchasing power and local recovery to invest in producing goods at appropriate prices to avoid selling at a loss before they can recover full production, he added.

Bui Ta Hoang Vu, director of HCMC's Department of Industry and Trade, stated that consumers are prioritizing environmental protection products and recycled products, which means Vietnamese businesses must change to improve their competitiveness. In addition, the city's textile and garment enterprises should promote links with provinces and cities across the country to learn and share experiences with each other.

AGTEK was established in 1993 with an initial membership of just over 40 businesses. To date, the association has developed nearly 200 members, and its activities have been expanded to neighboring provinces.

The leader of AGTEK emphasized that although the general situation is still difficult, the association's members have been trying to assert themselves in the global value chain, striving to reach $47 billion in export turnover in 2023.