KARACHI, March 26: Bedwear exports have continuously been falling for the last three months (December to February) amid tough competition emerging from the newly-inducted members to the European Union (EU) belonging to former East European bloc.

The latest export figures disclosed that export of bedwear during the month of February 2007 declined by 12.15pc at $125,259 as against $143,727 recorded in the same month last year.

Similarly, there had been a fall of 5.29 per cent to $1.263 billion during first eight months (July to February) of current fiscal compared to $1.334 billion exports achieved in the corresponding period last year.

During January 2007, bedwear exports suffered a fall of 13.50 per cent at $137,242 from $158,654 recorded in the same month last year. The decline during July to January stood by 5.42 per cent at $1.126 billion from $1.190 billion of the corresponding period last year.

The general perception that Pakistani textiles are losing their world market share owing to tough competition being thrown by exporters from China and India is totally wrong because huge investment made by the original 15 members of the EU into newly-inducted members from former East European bloc is taking away the European market.

“There had been large scale relocation of textile units from Western Europe to former East European nations after getting membership in the EU,” said chairman, Pakistan Bedwear Exporters Association (PBEA), Shabir Ahmed.

He said the new 10 members to the EU not only give the advantage of proximity of distance, but also offer cheap and productive labour.

“When we export goods from Pakistan to European countries, it takes around one month to reach its destination whereas it takes only two days by road from Eastern Europe to reach rich Western European nations.

“As a result of this,” Shabir Ahmed said “our exporters are also put at disadvantage on account of high freight charges as goods have to go from one continent to another.

He said rapid fall in bedwear exports strongly indicates that it would not be possible to even achieve last year’s export volume of $2.038 billion. Therefore, it would be even a rare possibility to think of achieving current year’s target of $2.275 billion fixed by the government, he added.

Unlike other textile exports, the PBEA chief said bedwear exports to European countries are also burdened with 5.8 per cent anti-dumping duty and have to pay customs duty at 10 per cent.

Under EU’s GSP plus scheme, other nations such as Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, do not pay 10 per cent customs duty, he informed.

Shabir Ahmed said that in this scenario, how our bedwear exporters could compete in a market where they have to face the burden in the shape of duties to the tune 16 per cent (5.8 per cent anti-dumping duty plus 10 per cent customs duty).

Other factors which are crippling our textile exports, he said, are high cost of inputs, including power, gas and labour charges. However, the high mark-up rates have further aggravated the situation for export trade, he asserted.

There was a time, he said, when textile industry was substantially importing Pima cotton from US for producing quality yarn to manufacture high quality finished and value-added textile goods.

However, import of Pima cotton has almost come to standstill because export of high quality textile goods has stopped.