Positive mood in Bangladesh
It seems tanners in Bangladesh are finally beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel. Although the global financial downturn has taken a toll on the country’s leather sector, tanners are starting to feel more positive, according to the country’s Financial Express newspaper.
Tanners believe the global economy is starting to recover and are enjoying low domestic leather prices, according to the paper. Leathergoods orders are also starting to improve.
The Eid-ul Azha festival (November 27 and 30) reportedly brought in an extra Tk 10 billion ($145.2 million) for the leather sector, with higher quality raw material used more frequently than in previous years. According to the Financial Express, 40% of the country’s annual hide and goat skin supply is collected around the time of the feast.
Leather is currently Bangladesh’s third largest foreign exchange earner. Exports between July 2008 and February 2009 totalled $125 million, according to the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB).
