A Shift in the World’s Biggest Apparel Market
Something significant is happening in the global readymade garment trade. China, which has long dominated the US apparel import market, is steadily losing ground. Tariff pressures, rising labour costs, and a broader US policy push to diversify supply chains away from Chinese manufacturing have accelerated that retreat. For Bangladesh, the world’s second-largest garment exporter, this should represent a once-in-a-generation opening. So far, the country has not fully converted that opportunity into market share gains.
The gap between what is possible and what is actually happening is the central tension in Bangladesh’s RMG export story right now.
Why China Is Stepping Back
China’s declining share in the US apparel market is not a sudden development. It has been building for years, driven by a combination of factors. US tariffs on Chinese goods, which escalated sharply during the trade disputes of the late 2010s and have remained elevated since, made Chinese-made clothing significantly more expensive for American importers. At the same time, wages in China’s manufacturing heartland have risen considerably, eroding the cost advantage that once made Chinese factories the default choice for global brands.
American retailers and brands have been actively looking for alternatives, and several Asian competitors, including Vietnam, Cambodia, and Indonesia, have moved quickly to absorb some of that redirected demand. Bangladesh, despite its scale and its established relationships with major Western buyers, has been slower to capture a proportionate share of the shift.
Bangladesh’s Position in the Global RMG Landscape
Bangladesh’s garment industry is not a minor player by any measure. The sector employs millions of workers, the vast majority of them women, and accounts for the overwhelming bulk of the country’s export earnings. The industry has spent the past decade rebuilding its reputation on factory safety and compliance following the Rana Plaza disaster of 2013, and that work has paid off: Bangladesh now has more LEED-certified green garment factories than any other country in the world.
The country’s factories are competitive on price, and its workforce is experienced. Major global brands, from H&M and Zara to Walmart and Gap, source heavily from Bangladeshi suppliers. The infrastructure for large-scale production is in place. On paper, Bangladesh is well-positioned to absorb demand that China is vacating.
Where the Gap Lies
The challenge is partly structural and partly about product mix. The US market increasingly demands faster turnaround times, greater product diversification, and higher-value items such as technical fabrics, outerwear, and man-made fibre garments. Bangladesh has historically been strongest in basic cotton knitwear and woven items, categories where margins are thinner and competition is fierce. Moving up the value chain requires investment in new machinery, skills development, and raw material sourcing, all of which take time and capital.
There are also logistical considerations. Bangladesh does not have a direct sea route to the US West Coast that matches the speed and cost efficiency that some competitors can offer. Port infrastructure at Chittagong, while improving, remains a bottleneck during peak export seasons.
What Needs to Happen
Industry analysts and trade bodies have consistently pointed to the same set of priorities: product diversification into non-cotton categories, investment in backward linkages so that more raw materials are sourced domestically rather than imported, and a push to improve lead times. The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) has flagged these issues repeatedly, and the government has offered various incentives to encourage factory-level upgrades.
The window created by China’s retreat will not stay open indefinitely. Vietnam and other competitors are moving fast. Bangladesh has the scale, the workforce, and the buyer relationships to compete, but converting potential into actual export growth in the US market will require deliberate action rather than simply waiting for orders to arrive.
The RMG sector has carried Bangladesh’s economy through decades of development. Whether it can adapt quickly enough to capitalise on this particular moment will say a great deal about the industry’s next chapter.