Thailand' s garment textile exports surge by 28.8 billion baht

Thailand' s garments and textile exports surged 28.8 million baht ($866 million) in the first 11 months of 2021. According to the Thai Garment Manufacturers Association, Thailand exported 64.8 billion baht ($1.95 billion) of garments and 188.6 billion baht ($5.67 billion) of textiles during the period against $866 million worth of garments and textile exports in the first five months of the 2020/21 financial year.

As per US Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service of March 2021, Thailand’s garment and textile industries were decimated in 2020, with 3,000 factories forced to resort to sewing face masks and PPE suits to survive. However, renewed demand from other apparel-producing countries helped these factories return to full capacity. The demand for textile products from the country was driven by India, Vietnam and Indonesia with brands in Europe and the US also increasing their orders for products made from recycled fibers, organic cotton and environmentally-friendly materials.

These factories are currently facing a shortage of upto 50,000 workers and, are dependent on overtime work, which could lead to an influx of migrant workers back to Thailand in search of employment now that the industry has recovered.