Mohiuddin Rubel

Bangladesh's 2025 was strong on paper: $8.20 billion in US exports, up 11.71 percent, lifting its share to 10.53 percent — inside a market that shrank 1.74 percent in value and 3.70 percent in quantity

For more than four decades, Bangladesh’s readymade garment (RMG) sector has been the backbone of the national economy.

Picture a garment factory in Ashulia on a Tuesday morning. Machines hum, deadlines loom, and a buyer waits on a shipment.

For nations heavily reliant on the American market, the message is unambiguous

This roller coaster began on April 2, 2025, when the United States imposed broad reciprocal tariffs under emergency powers.

Bangladesh’s export engine, long powered by the ready-made garment (RMG) sector, slowed in 2025 amid overlapping domestic and external shocks.

The ready-made garment (RMG) industry is the heartbeat of Bangladesh’s economy, an engine of prosperity that drives exports, creates millions of jobs and shapes the nation’s global identity. This vibrant sector thrives on precision, speed and reliability. Yet it can also be brought to a standstill in an instant by an all-too-familiar challenge: the sudden loss of power.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are the lifeblood of economic development, especially in countries like Bangladesh.