Argentina's import ban affects Paraguayan apparel sector

19 Sep '13

2 min read

The barriers on Paraguayan imports imposed by Argentina since 2012 have caused a damage of US$ 7 million to the clothing industry, owing to cancelled and pending licenses, according to the report of the Tailoring Industry Association of Paraguay (AICP).

The current Paraguayan clothing industry situation has been explained to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to find a solution to the problems faced by the industry, La Nacion reported.

According to the report, the volume of orders affected by the trade restrictions amounted to US$ 6.8 million last year, where as for the current year so far the figure has reached to US$ 264,000 totaling it to around US$ 7 million.

Santiago Colombino, head of the AICP, said that a meeting was held with the National Foreign Ministry to discuss these issues and the Ministry has decided to address the matter.

The biggest difficulty faced by the Paraguayan clothing industry is the lack of market access, especially in Argentina, he added.

According to the report, around two to three years ago, 50 percent of the clothing exports from Paraguay were destined for Argentina, whereas now Brazil has become the most important destination for the exports from the garment industry.

Currently, Paraguay exports 80 percent of its clothing items to Brazil.

The restriction imposed by Argentina has affected the Paraguayan clothing industry the most and many clothing companies in Paraguay, mostly small and medium enterprises, have stopped production activities, due to lack of orders from the Argentine market, Colombino said.

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India