Textiles – Manthan – Bangladesh Wage Hike: Will Cost Arbitrage Erode?
Published on 03 Nov 2026
Garment workers in Bangladesh have been protesting for past few days across industrial hubs like Dhaka, Ashulia, Savar and Gazipur, demanding a higher minimum monthly wage to keep pace with soaring inflation and living costs. Bangladesh has formed a wage board to review garment workers' pay, and a significant wage hike is now on cards.
Bangladesh was set to graduate from the least developed country (LDC) category from Nov’26. Instead, the UN General Assembly recently extended its LDC status by 3 years to give it time to handle economic and political transition challenges. Over the years, the LDC status (assigned by the UN since 1975) has given Bangladesh’s textile and ready-made garment (RMG) sector massive global cost and market advantage in the form of zero-duty access to key markets. This has been a key driver behind the phenomenal growth in the country’s garment exports, propelling it ahead of India.
