SHIMULIA, BANGLADESH: Hundreds of thousands of Bangladeshi garment workers rushed back to major cities Saturday, besieging train and bus stations, after the government said export factories could reopen despite a deadly coronavirus wave.
With the economy badly hit by the pandemic, the government excluded the factories that supply top brands in Europe and North America from a nationwide lockdown order.
Authorities had ordered factories, offices, transport and shops to close from July 23 to August 5 as daily coronavirus infections and deaths hit record levels.
Officially, Bangladesh has reported 1.2 million cases and more than 20,000 deaths. Experts say the real figures are at least four times higher.
The government said however that the country’s 4,500 garment factories, which employ more than four million people, can reopen from Sunday, sparking a rush back to industrial cities.
The influential garment factory owners had warned of “catastrophic” consequences if orders for foreign brands were not completed on time.
Hundreds of thousands who had gone back to their villages to celebrate the Eid al Adha Muslim festival and sit out the lockdown, headed to Dhaka in any available transport — some just walking in the monsoon rain.
At the Shimulia ferry station, 70 kilometers (45 miles) south of Dhaka, tens of thousands of workers waited hours for boats to take them to the capital.
Garment factory worker Mohammad Masum, 25, said he left his village before dawn, walked more than 30 kilometers (20 miles) and took rickshaws to get to the ferry port.
“Police stopped us at many checkpoints and the ferry was packed,” he said.
“It was a mad rush to get home when the lockdown was imposed and now we are in trouble again getting back to work,” Jubayer Ahmad, another worker, told AFP.
Bangladesh is the world’s second largest garment exporter after China and the industry has become the foundation of the economy for the country of 169 million people.
Mohammad Hatem, vice president of the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association, said up to $3 billion worth of export orders were at risk if factories had stayed closed.
“The brands would have diverted their orders to other countries,” Hatem told AFP.
Global fashion’s workshop returns as Bangladesh factories reopen despite virus surge
https://arab.news/9q5yp
Global fashion’s workshop returns as Bangladesh factories reopen despite virus surge
- Country’s 4,500 garment factories employ more than four million people
- Nation suffered 80,000 pandemic deaths, experts predict
Closing Bell: Saudi main index closes in red at 10,847
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index dipped on Wednesday, losing 58.51 points, or 0.54 percent, to close at 10,847.93.
The total trading turnover of the benchmark index was SR3.78 billion ($1 billion), as 73 of the listed stocks advanced, while 187 retreated.
The MSCI Tadawul Index decreased, down 7.09 points or 0.48 percent, to close at 1,472.98.
The Kingdom’s parallel market Nomu lost 178.75 points, or 0.77 percent, to close at 22,916.83. This comes as 30 of the listed stocks advanced, while 37 retreated.
The best-performing stock was the Power and Water Utility Co. for Jubail and Yanbu, with its share price surging by 8.47 percent to SR31.24.
Other top performers included Saudi Paper Manufacturing Co., which saw its share price rise by 6.13 percent to SR53.70, and Jamjoom Pharmaceuticals Factory Co., which saw a 4.58 percent increase to SR137.
On the downside, the worst performer of the day was CHUBB Arabia Cooperative Insurance Co., whose share price fell by 5.14 percent to SR17.53.
Saudi Kayan Petrochemical Co. and Arabian Internet and Communications Services Co. also saw declines, with their shares dropping by 4.87 percent and 4.43 percent to SR4.88 and SR181.40, respectively.
On the announcement front, Saudi Kayan Petrochemical Co. announced its annual financial results for 2025, with sales dropping 3.06 percent year-on-year to SR8.45 billion. The company also recorded a net loss of SR893.86 million.
In a Tadawul statement, the company said the net loss and decline in annual sales were driven by a drop in average selling prices, despite higher sales volumes.
