On the 9 day, an industry leader said that because of the increase in basic consumer goods prices, the wages of Bangladesh exporting garment factories will increase by about 20% next month.

MohammadFazlulHaque, President of Bangladesh knitwear manufacturer and exporter Association (BKMEA), said the board decided today to lighten the burden on workers, which would help improve their productivity.

Knitted apparel is the largest export industry in Bangladesh. It has more than 1500 factories and employs 800 thousand workers.

During the -6 month of July 2007/08, the export income of knitted apparel increased by 21.5%, to 5 billion 530 million US dollars, and 1.24% higher than that of the target.

In the fiscal year 2007/08, Bangladesh's exports increased by 15.87% over the previous year, reaching US $14 billion 110 million, mainly driven by the growth of clothing sales.

In the past two years, the price of Bangladesh has increased by nearly 2 times, and it may continue to rise during Ramadan in early September.

MohammadFazlulHaque said that if the government can ensure that the supply of electricity and natural gas is not interrupted, and that other infrastructure and related equipment can be kept up, the export of knitted garments is expected to grow by 18% to 6 billion 500 million US dollars in the current fiscal year ending June 2009.