Garments are made for export at a factory in the northern province of Thai Nguyen. Viet Nam was the fifth largest garment and textile exporter in the world and had achieved an impressive growth rate.— VNA/VNS Photo Trong Dat

HCM CITY  (Biz Hub) — India, which supplies 2 per cent of the inputs used by the Vietnamese textile and garment industry, wants to increase it to 25 per cent in the next five years, according to the Cotton Textiles Export Promotion Council of India (TEXPROL).

Speaking at a Viet Nam – India Textile and Garment business forum in HCM City yesterday, Manikam Ramaswami, TEXPROCIL's chairman, said Viet Nam was the fifth largest garment and textile exporter in the world and had achieved an impressive growth rate.

But it had to import a lot of the raw materials while India was the world's second largest producer of materials like cotton, cloth and fibre, he said.

Co-operation between the two countries would help Vietnamese enterprises diversify their raw material sources and sell high-quality products to the international market, he added.

Siddhartha Rajagopal, TEXPROCIL's executive director, said Viet Nam needed huge quantities of right-priced, quality woven and knit fabrics to continue its growth momentum.

"India could be an economical source of quality yarns and fabrics to bridge the gap and make garments even more competitive for Viet Nam."

Viet Nam's import of yarns and fabrics from India accounted for only 2 per cent of its needs, and "Our aim is to look at a 25 per cent market share in the short term," he added.

Bui Thi Thanh An, deputy director general of the Viet Nam Trade Promotion Agency, said trade between Viet Nam and India sharply increased in recent years, reaching US$5.2 billion last year, of which VietNam's exports accounted for $2.3 billion.

Garment and textile trade also saw considerable growth in recent years, she said.

The event was organised by Vietrade, the Indian embassy in Ha Noi and consulate in HCM City, and e-commerce portal Vietrade.com together with TEXPROCIL and the Viet Nam Textile and Apparel Association in HCM City.

The Indian delegation, which visited Viet Nam from August 4 to 8 to explore business opportunities, comprised executives from 12 leading textile and garment companies. — VNS