May 22, 1999
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| May 22, 1999 | atimes.com | |
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| Southeast Asia Indonesian textile industry in deep trouble: association JAKARTA - Some $26 billion invested so far in the country's textile and garment industry could go down the drain if the government fails to take immediate steps to prop up the sinking real sector, the Indonesian Textile Association said. API secretary general Benny Sutrisno said that half of the 2,600 units of textile and garment factories have stopped operation and 70 percent of the textile and garment companies are saddled with bad debts. With exports worth $7.8 billion in 1998, the textile and garment industry is the country's largest export earner outside oil and gas. Benny said he doubts that the industry can maintain for much longer its position as one of the largest contributors to the country's export earning. ''The year 1999 has been the worst period for textile and garment industry with exports averaging only $300,000 per month. Only with serious and concrete steps can the industry be saved from crumbling and revived,'' he told the Neraca daily. He said textile companies still managing to continue operation are those having no debt to banks. He said the government should not generalize the problems faced by textile companies. ''Each company has different problems and business prospects,'' he said. He denied suggestion blaming all industrialists for the near collapse of the industry, saying that ''honest businessmen would also be swept by the crisis." He said the government should seek to prop up the banking sector at the same time with the real sector. (Asia Pulse/Antara) | |||||||||
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