Export prices of leather and leather products in Bangladesh, which jumped 30% in 2000-01, are now declining and the trend continued during 2002-03, according to the Bangladesh Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) figures.
In 2001-02, exports fetched US$207 million, a decline of more than 18%, with a further drop of about 8% to as low as $191 million in the year just ended. The industry is now going through a bad time, according to the Bangladesh Finished Leather Exporters Association.
Buyers are reluctant to buy leather even at lower prices. In the period 2002-03, leather exports dropped by 11% to 164.5 million sq ft compared with 184 million sq ft in the 2001-2002 period. In 2000-01, the industry exported about 212 million sq ft.
Following SARS, orders have started coming in again. Around 60-70% of the country’s leather goes to China through Hong Kong. China manufactures leather products and mainly exports those to the USA and EU markets where buying has slowed down.
