Bangladesh can also possess signed on the dotted line, but in the change tug-of-war with the US, it looks as if Washington came out the certain winner, as per a GTRI document. The these days offered US–Bangladesh deal supplies conditional advantages for Dhaka, but at a impress that will a long way outweigh the positive aspects.
Zero responsibility, but fully on US cotton
The joint assertion launched on 9 February 2026 says the US will reduce its reciprocal tariff on Bangladeshi goods to 19% and provide zero-responsibility entry “apt for apparel made with US-initiating cotton and man-made fibres”.
On paper, this appears to be like generous. If truth be told, it is a long way extra restrictive.
Moreover Be taught: US zero-tariff clause for Bangladesh in change deal: Are textile fears in India overblown?
For a same old Bangladeshi garment, currently facing a 12% US MFN tariff, the final responsibility below the fresh deal would attain 31% (12% MFN + 19% reciprocal). If, and fully if, the garment makes mutter of US fibres, the responsibility drops to 12%.
“Whereas this appears to be like to be to be a significant concession, Bangladesh’s export construction and its heavy dependence on non-US textile inputs mean the association is in all probability to lead to only a exiguous elevate in garment exports to the US,” notes the GTRI document.
The numbers in the aid of the deal
Bangladesh exported $50.9 billion in apparel globally in 2024, dwarfing India’s $16.3 billion. But the US is a minor player for Dhaka: apt $7.4 billion of its garment exports went to The United States.
In distinction, the European Union accounts for over 63% ($32.3 billion) of Bangladesh’s garment change, and that’s already responsibility-free, without any sourcing restrictions.
Briefly, Bangladesh’s garment supply chains are built to abet Europe, no longer the US, making the shift to US-linked fibres economically unattractive.
Provide chain reality check
Bangladesh depends heavily on imported textile inputs, and the U.S. plays fully a minor feature. In 2024, the nation imported $16.1 billion value of fibres, yarns, and fabrics. China led the pack with $9 billion, India contributed $3.1 billion, and the U.S. supplied apt $274 million.
Cotton fibre: Of the $2.5 billion imported, the U.S. supplied $255 million. India ($655 million) and Brazil ($604 million) had been the well-known suppliers, dominating the market.
Moreover Be taught: ‘Bangladesh has no money’: Used diplomat on Dhaka’s Boeing jets aquire below US change deal
Cotton legend: India supplied $1.6 billion of the $1.8 billion total, highlighting Bangladesh’s dependence on regional suppliers for this severe input.
Materials: China dominates the material segment. For woven synthetic filament fabrics ($1.4 billion total), China supplied $1.1 billion, whereas the U.S. contributed $88 million. For woven cotton fabrics ($1.3 billion total), China supplied $601 million and India $194 million. The sample is comparable for synthetic filament legend, with China supplying $329 million out of $442 million total, and India $53 million.
The upshot: no longer up to 1-third of Bangladeshi apparel initiating up from fibre; most rely on imported legend and fabric. To qualify for the U.S. zero-tariff profit, Bangladesh would want to rebuild significant spinning and fabric-processing capacity — a large funding it currently lacks.
The change-off
Within the meantime, Bangladesh has opened its doorways extensive to US industrial and agricultural goods, agreeing to:
Aquire about $3.5 billion in US farm products,
Commit to prolonged-term purchases of US vitality and airplane,
Rely extra heavily on US cotton as both an import and a gatekeeper for apparel entry,
Settle for extensive compliance tasks on labour requirements, forced-labour bans, customs digitisation, bound-border files flows, and mental-property enforcement.
Moreover Be taught: Bangladesh’s first put up-Hasina vote exams Gen Z momentum and the India–China steadiness of vitality
The deal’s design gives Washington deep oversight over Dhaka’s export sector, whereas the shiny positive aspects for Bangladesh’s garment industry are modest at fully.
“Since the EU absorbs virtually two-thirds of Bangladesh’s garment exports and already supplies unconditional zero-tariff entry, the incentive to restructure supply chains primarily for the US market is passe,” GTRI founder Ajay Srivastava observes.
“As a consequence, the US zero-tariff supply for apparel made with American fibres is in all probability to lead fully to marginal will enhance in Bangladesh’s garment exports to the US, and is extra in all probability to elevate US cotton exports than remodel Bangladesh’s apparel exports to the US market.”
Bangladesh has conceded plot over it stands to gather. The expenses of restructuring supply chains, assembly compliance tasks, and committing to prolonged-term US purchases can also rapidly produce Dhaka quiz the wisdom of this lopsided reduce value.
