2014, it was a turbulent year for the textile industry in Asia - the surge in wages of Chinese workers, the riots in Kampuchea and the collapse of factories in Bangladesh. Textile industry in Asia A slight headline also reflects the transformation of the textile industry in the Far East.

Reporters learned that China is no longer a cheap clothing country, because in the coastal areas of the main garment industry center, the wages of workers are about 500 dollars a month, and the inland area is 250 dollars, so in recent years, foreign clothing retailers have transferred the factory to mengala and Burma. Bangladesh clothing The industry has grown to $25 billion, employing 4 million 400 thousand workers. Burma is US $5 billion 500 million, providing 650 thousand of employment opportunities.

But in these cheap clothing countries, workers began to fight for higher wages. After a labour dispute, Burma raised the monthly salary of workers to 68 dollars, an increase of 77%. In November 2014, the Ministry of labour of Bangladesh raised the minimum monthly salary of clothing workers to $128, an increase of $75, and the monthly salary was almost two times that of Burma.

For the giants of the global apparel industry from these countries (e.g. H&M, Inditex and WAL-MART), the slight increase in the wages of these countries is minimal for the entire business model, because they include marketing, transportation, sales, customs duties and taxes, which account for only 2% to 3% of the total production cost. The rise in wages has further reduced the profits of local garment companies.

However, these garment retailers have found areas to replace Asia as production centers. H&M, Tesco and Primark have already begun to purchase from Ethiopia, because there is no minimum monthly salary limit, and for unskilled workers, the monthly salary is only 35 to 40 dollars, much lower than that in Burma. These foreign clothing merchants are very popular in African countries, and they also benefit a lot from the abundant local labor force and energy. The clothing industry in Kenya is also developing. Although the country's monthly salary is about 120 dollars, the government has attracted the foreign businessmen with abundant rewards.

Observers say that East African countries are expected to replace East Asia as clothing production centers. In contrast to East Asia, East African countries, apart from cheap labour, have clothing The cost of shipping to Europe or the United States is even lower. In addition, African countries signed a special trade agreement with the United States in 2000, and American clothing entered the African market for tax exemption. With the development of local cotton industry in Africa, local resources can be purchased to further reduce costs.