FRANKFURT: Pakistan’s
textile producers, whether big or small, have received encouraging response
from European consumers in the world’s biggest exhibition of home textiles, but
still regional rivals edge out Pakistani companies in many cases due to cost
advantage.
Alongside big export companies of Pakistan, massive orders have also been
discussed with the smaller ones, according to representatives of different companies that had put up
stalls in the pavilion set up by the state-owned Trade Development Authority of
Pakistan at the Heimtextil exhibition.Apart from home textiles such as bed
linen and towels, the European buyers have also expressed great interest in the
textile products used in health facilities. However, an increase in prices of
yarn and cotton, which are vital inputs in textile production, has pushed up
production cost by 15 to 20%, making it tough for the exporters to finalise
orders at competitive prices.
Textile exporters criticise
FBR for delaying refunds,Shahab
Textile Mills Chief Executive Officer Sheikh Ali Ahmed Sadiq told The
Express Tribune that
they had found great demand for health-care textile products from across the
world.Europe, the US, Middle East and Africa were big markets for such textile
goods, he revealed, adding Canada too was a major consumer of health-care
textile products, but it had levied 18% duty on exports from Pakistan. On the
other hand, Bangladeshi exporters are enjoying duty-free status there.
Pakistan produces scores of health-care textile products of excellent quality
which include clothes for patients, bed sheets, specialised bed sheets and
towels for operation theatres, gowns for doctors and paramedical staff.“Though
Pakistani products have drawn a great response, their high production cost has
left the country uncompetitive in relation to regional rivals. We are losing
orders to companies from China, Bangladesh, Turkey, Vietnam, India and Egypt,”
said Sadiq.
The Indian government has given concessions to its industries in a bid to help
them compete well in the global market.Sadiq has been participating in
Heimtextil since 2013 and considers it a great platform for interacting and
forging linkages with big textile buyers. He chastised the government for its
“lack of attention” and high production cost of businesses, saying exporters
had got bogged down because of these factors.With the business cost staying high, the exporters also could not reap the rewards
of the rupee’s sharp depreciation against the dollar in December 2017. A weaker
currency gives price advantage to exporters in the international market, but at
the same time it makes imports expensive for businesses.
Speaking on the occasion, Multimet
International Executive Director Zafar Saeed revealed that an old customer of
the company had come up with a huge order for the Spanish market.Pakistan’s gems and jewels
exporters drool over CPEC,Spanish
buyers were willing to offer a 3 to 4% higher price compared to the previous
order, but over the past year production cost in Pakistan had gone up in the
range of 15 to 20%, he said.“Even if we minimise our margins, the goods will
still be expensive by around 10%, making it difficult for us to win orders,” he
said while pointing out that new buyers from Spain, Poland and Albania had also
expressed interest in Pakistan’s home textiles.
Gul Ahmed Textile Mills Chairman Mohomed
Bashir pointed to the latest technological advances including digital printing
and online export orders being embraced by the home textile industry worldwide.He suggested that Pakistani companies should adapt themselves to the changing
trends in order to secure their place in the international market. More than
200 Pakistani companies took part in the four-day Heimtextil fair that ended on
Friday.
Source: Pakistan Tribune, Pakistan Tuesday, 16 January 2018