Vietnamese footwear sector forced to turn orders down
According to the Vietnam Leather and Footwear Association (Lefaso), footwear manufacturers in the country are struggling to cope with increasing order levels. It claims higher labour costs in China have seen many brands transfer production to Vietnam since the start of the year. During the first nine months of 2010, shoe export revenues have rise 18% to $3.7 billion.
“In 2010, Vietnam planned to export $4.6 to 4.7 billion worth of footwear products, an increase of 13% over 2009,” said Lefaso chairman Nguyen Duc Thuan. “However, with the current favourable conditions, the export revenue may reach over $5 billion,” Thuan said.
Reports suggest many shoemakers have had to turn down orders as they simply don’t have the extra capacity to fulfil them.
