The upcoming enforcement of free trade agreements (FTAs) and increasing awareness to invest in technology would be key to Vietnam’s garment and textile sector making significant leap in 2019.
Ten out of the 12 FTAs signed by Vietnam have already been enforced including the ASEAN-China FTA, the ASEAN-Korea FTA and ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA).
Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), which officially came into effect on 30 December 2018, is also expected to give the biggest boost to country’s textile and garment sector.
The US-China trade war may also help local garment companies in Vietnam to grab all the orders moving away from China and therefore local businesses are gradually realising the importance of investing in new technologies.
“We have proposed several measures to the Government and also to relevant ministries and sectors to remove policies that create obstacles for doing business in garment and textile sector.” – Vu Duc Giang, Chairman, Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS)
All these have made VITAS set an export turnover target of US $ 40 billion for the garment and textile sector this year, which is a rise of 10.8 per cent from what it was in 2018. It is worth noting that in 2018 Vietnam’s garment and textile industry had clocked an amazing US $ 36 billion.
Notably, many garment companies in Vietnam are already booked with orders for the first 6 months of 2019.
