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Myanmarese Garment Exports Earned US$ 2 Billion In 2016, Says Industry Association

• By  Henry Dsouza
• January 28, 2017

Myanmar is likely to have earned about US$ 2 billion in 2016 from garment cutting, making and packaging (CMP) industry, which is run under a piece work system, according to the Myanmar Garment Entrepreneurs' Association.

Myanmar earned US$ 1.65 billion in 2015, and more than US$ 1.1 billion was earned between April and November of fiscal year 2016-17, according to Myanmar's Ministry of Commerce sources, as per a report appearing in the Myanmarese media.

"As of December 16 this year (2016), CMP garment industry earned US$ 1.158 billion but in the same period of the previous year, we earned US$ 527.665 million. So this year's revenue exceeds last year's by US$ 629.709 million," Myanmar's Ministry of Commerce Assistant Secretary Khin Maung Lwin was quoted as saying in the report.

Presently, orders from European Union (EU) countries are on the increase, exceeding that of Japan which had placed the largest number of orders until last year.

According to the Myanmar Garment Entrepreneurs' Association, increasing orders from EU are a result of Generalised System of Preferences (GSP).

In 2015, Japan purchased more than US$ 580 million worth of garments from Myanmar. Before 2003, Myanmar's garments were mainly exported to the United States, after which Japan became the biggest buyer from 2010 onwards.

The division of Myanmar's CMP garment export market share is as follows: 33% goes to Japan, 25% to EU, especially Germany, 25% to South Korea and 2.4% each to the US and China. Incidentally, there are more than 100 garment factories across Myanmar employment about 400,000 workers, the report stated. 

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