Thai apparel producers seek govt help for fabric import
18 Nov '11
2 min read
The Thai apparel producers are seeking Government help to overcome the shortage of raw materials, particularly fabric.
The sector is confronting severe raw material crisis and preliminary assessments indicate that it has inputs only enough to suffice for maximum four weeks, Thai Garment Manufacturers Association (TGMA) President Sukij Kongpiyacharn said.
TGMA requested the Government to cut textile import tariffs to ease import of raw materials like fabric from Taiwan and China.
Floods in the country have affected the entire industry right from upstream to downstream production.
Though the textile dyeing units were not submerged during the floods, it is not possible for them to utilize polluted floodwater in their operations. If the issue of polluted water is not sorted out within next two to three weeks, the apparel industry would fall short of raw material to sustain its operations, the TGMA President said.
He stated that the damage caused to the sector due to floods is estimated to come to over one billion baht and TGMA is still accumulating data to learn about the exact damage.
He added that the initial estimates of 10 percent growth is no more likely this year due to the floods and the country's apparel exports are not likely to grow beyond last year's US$ 3.3 billion levels.