Vietnamese garment firms expect to achieve target for year 2016

Vietnamese textile company, Garmex Saigon projects 20 percent growth rate in revenue in comparision with 2015 as they have so far ensured enough jobs for the company until the end of the year, unlike previous years, said Le Quang Hung, president of Garmex Saigon. Garmex Saigon reported turnover of VND1.530 trillion in 2015, while abundant orders have led to turnover that may reach VND1.8 trillion this year.

However, Hung of Garmex Saigon said that if Vietnamese enterprises cannot change their business methods, the TPP and free trade agreements (FTAs) would not have much significance because the agreements on market opening cannot be fully exploited.

According to Hung, while the number of foreign invested enterprises (FIEs) only accounts for 30 percent of total enterprises in the industry, they make up 70 percent of total turnover. Vietnamese enterprises put out the remaining 30 percent.

Deputy chair of the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (Vitas) Pham Xuan Hong confirmed that most garment companies have orders for the first and second quarters, while some others have enough orders for the entire year.

The target to export $30 billion worth of textiles and garments in 2016 appears to be within reach.

Orders from importers have come in abundance, Hong said. The enterprises will have to now restart production after the long Tax holiday and look for workers.

Vietnam exported $27 billion worth of textile and garment products in 2015 and the target of $30 billion in export turnover in 2016, or 10 percent higher, appears to be attainable.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) has every reason to be optimistic about production in 2016.

The latest report showed that the production index of the textile industry grew by 12 percent in January compared with the same period last year, while the figure was 11.2 percent in the clothing industry.

The output of fabric made of natural fiber in January reached 30 million square meters, a 10 percent increase compared with the same period last year, while the output of fabric made of synthetic and artificial fibers rose by 6.5 percent to 63.3 million square meters.

In January alone, the textile and garment exports brought $2 billion, up by 5.8 percent over January 2015.

Textile & garment companies are optimistic about 2016 and the upcoming years because analysts predict that the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) would bring great opportunities to the industry.