Business

Vietnam Apparel Exports May Grow 7.4% This Year

Vietnam's apparel exports are expected to jump 7.4% this year to US$ 43.5 billion as factories keep up production despite surging coronavirus infections, the country's textile and garment association said. Vietnam recently lifted most of its Covid-19 curbs, which last year disrupted production and hobbled global supply chains. "The pandemic will have a milder impact on Vietnam's garment and textile industry this year thanks to a high vaccination rate," Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association vice chairman, Truong Van Cam, said. Even as Vietnam is witnessing fairly high daily Covid infections, businesses and experts said the risk of repeating last year's lockdowns is lower now that millions of factory workers have been vaccinated and with the Omicron variant appearing to be less severe. More than 76% of its population of 98 million has received at least two vaccine doses, according to official data. Cam said pandemic-related shutdowns had affected up to 1.2 million garment workers last year, or 65% of the industry's workforce. Nearly all of them have now returned to work, he added.