China and Bangladesh are two of the world's largest garment exporters, ranked first and third respectively according to Statistica. Over the past few months, the two heavyweights have been vying to become the UK's largest exporter of readymade garments (RMG).

Bangladesh beat China to top the list as the largest garment exporter in the UK market for four times during January-November last year, according to the UK government trade statistics.2023 During January-November, Bangladesh surpassed China in garment export revenue in January, March, April and May.

According to Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), Bangladesh exported slightly more than 178 million kilograms (392 million pounds) of garments to the UK during January-October last year, while China exported about 159 million kilograms (350 million pounds) of garments to the UK.

Although Bangladesh remains the second largest exporter of garments to the UK market by value, the country's position as the largest exporter of ready-made garments to the UK market by volume is "unchanged" since 2022, followed by China.

Although total clothing imports into the UK fell between January and November 2023 due to inflation caused by the Russian-Ukrainian war, Bangladesh's share of exports increased due to the competitive price of goods.

According to a UK government fact sheet, Bangladesh's apparel exports to the UK declined by 11.5% to £2.63 billion ($3.34 billion) between January and November last year, compared to $3.78 billion in the same period last year.

On the other hand, the UK's apparel imports from China fell by nearly 23 percent to about $3.6 billion in the last 11 months, compared to $4.67 billion in the same period in 2022.

According to Bangladeshi publication New Age, BGMEA vice president Faruque Hassan said that Bangladesh's apparel exports are "expected" to increase in 2023, but are hampered by "global economic woes". Hassan further said that retail sales in the UK in 2023 show a "dismal picture" ahead of holiday sales in late December.

Notably, total U.K. imports fell to about $13.5 billion from about $16.5 billion in January through November 2023, down from about $16.5 billion in the same period in 2022, according to official data.