Bangladesh will for the first time import 9 million bales of cotton this year thanks to the sudden rise in demand for yarn and fabrics, said Mohammad Ali Khokon, president of Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA).

In 2021, Bangladesh imported 8.5 million bales of cotton at a cost of over $3 billion. One bale equals to 480 pounds or 218 kg.

Cotton import will surge in the country as the export of Bangladeshi made garment items rose significantly with the gradual reopening of the global economies, he said today.

For instance, between July and December last year, the first six months of the current fiscal year, garment export grew by 28.02 per cent year-on-year to $19.90 billion.

Of the amount earned from the garment shipment, $11.16 billion came from knitwear, a 30.91 per cent rise year-on-year.

In the period, $8.73 billion came from woven, which is also 24.50 per cent higher year-on-year.

"The upward trend of garment export will continue up to June this year as we booked huge volume of work orders," Faruque Hassan, president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), said last week.

"We have already made payment of the letters of credit for importing the cotton," said Khokon.

"We are expecting a rush in import of cotton in March and April this year and a chaos in the port because of container congestion," said president of the platform for the primary textile sector and cotton millers.

Khokon again complained that the vessels of the international shipping lines are reluctant to come to the country's premier Chattogram port because of long stays due to congestion and for the shortage of container vessels.

The BTMA president was talking to a group of journalists at his association office in Dhaka to share the current situation of the textile industry.

Khokon also said currently the local spinners can meet 90 per cent demand for the raw materials for the knitwear sector but only 40 per cent of the woven sector.

As a result, some 6 billion out of total 10 billion meters of fabrics are imported to meet the demand of the local woven garment sector.