Garment exports to Japan in 2009 are expected to be worth US$1 billion this year, a rise of 20 per cent over 2008, according to the Viet Nam Textile and Apparel Association (Vitas).

The association said that about 80 per cent of Vietnamese garment makers had received orders that would see them through to the end of the year.

About 30-40 per cent of those orders were from Japan, Vitas added.

Sai Gon 3 Garment Joint Stock Company said that orders from Japan were 20 per cent up over last year and that it had signed contracts with Japanese clothing firms to supply garments up to the middle of next year.

Pham Xuan Hong, director of the company, said most of its orders had been for jeans and khaki clothing.

According to the Viet Nam Customs department, the company's export turnover to Japan in the first seven months of this year was $16.7 million, up 81.1 per cent over the same period in 2008.

The company said the main reason for increasing orders from Japan was that the country had eliminated import tariffs on Vietnamese textiles and garments that use home-grown raw materials, or materials that had originated in Japan or an ASEAN nation.

Japan's decision to scrap import duties followed the signing of the Viet Nam-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement.

Nguyen Hong Trang, director of Son Kim Company, which exports underwear to Japan, said she was confident orders would increase. However, she said that standards demanded by Japanese firms meant that Vietnamese firms would have to continue to invest in new technologies.

Japan has become an increasingly important market for Vietnamese garments, as orders from the US and EU have declined due to global economic downturn.

Last year, Vietnamese textile and garment exports to Japan were worth $820 million, 16 per cent higher than in 2007.

(Source: Vietnamnet)