In recent years, the ceramic industry has been thriving in Bangladesh. The top ceramics brand in Bangladesh, such as DBL, has already started exporting ceramics products, suppressing the local demands.
Now we are dominating both local and international markets. And the growth of the market seems to be one of the major foreign exchange earning industries. However, that didn’t happen overnight.
Let’s look at the journey and gain some idea of the prospects of the ceramic industry in Bangladesh.
Brief history of the ceramics industry in Bangladesh
The first industrial ceramic factories in Bangladesh were built in 1958. Initially, it was a small porcelain tableware production facility belonging to Tajma Ceramic Industries.
After that, in 1966, Pakistan Ceramic Industries began manufacturing. Now, it is known as Peoples Ceramic Industries. Next came Bengal Fine Ceramics Ltd in 1986, starting its operations as the first stoneware producer in our country.
Moving on to the present condition…
The current condition of the ceramic industry
Our economy has become sustainable over time that giving rise to the expansion of urbanization.
Why does that matter? These two factors greatly influence the local demand for ceramic items. And the market is steadily growing.
At present, our ceramic industry is capable of taking care of over 80% of domestic demand. On top of that, the industry supplies a sizeable percentage of ceramics in the export market. USA, Europe, and the Middle East are the primary export markets.
Additionally, over 500,000 people are directly employed in this industry, with a total investment of BDT 86,160 million. That’s why the local businesses have been expanding their facilities and operations to keep up with the exponential growth rates.
Read Also: Choose the Perfect LED Lights for Your Room
International competitors and export markets
More than 50 different nations source ceramic from our industry. The top export markets are the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Netherlands, Sweden, Italy, Spain, and France.
Lined up, Bangladeshi ceramic manufacturers face countries like China and Thailand in the international market. The sector has drawn in global capital, primarily from China and the Middle East.
Strengths of the ceramics industry in Bangladesh
You can see the prominence of our ceramic industry in the international market. Now, you must wonder how Bangladesh became a successful competitor globally.
The reason is that Bangladesh has a variety of products to offer which is highly demandable worldwide. In addition, we adhere to the international quality standard consistently.
Besides, you must know about the trade between USA & China. It was a golden opportunity for Bangladesh as the USA imposed higher tariffs on China’s ceramic products. And this circumstance gave Bangaldesh’s ceramic products an excellent chance to be in the international limelight.
Although the low labor cost gives our nation a competitive advantage, competition with China and India is still strong. Nevertheless, our ceramic industry seems to beat other countries steadily.
What to expect in the future?
Apparently, Bangladesh will be even more successful in the ceramic industry. It has started to work with advanced ceramics lately with many useful features aiding in water purification, energy conversation, etc.
Ceramic items made with advanced technology are predicted to significantly impact the world market. Amazingly, that is projected to rise rapidly and reach USD 141.53 billion by 2025.
Also, Bangladesh is trying to tap into this promising market by going beyond the usual uses of ceramics. Moreover, businesses and institutions invest much in research and development to fully explore the possibilities of advanced ceramics.
With these instances, you can expect the industry to become the third largest within the next five years.
Posing challenges of the industry
Even though Bangladesh has advantages in this field, there are some obstacles to overcome—
- The inconsistent supply of natural gas severely hampers the sector. And the quality standards are related to this as well.
- Bangladesh is too dependent on imported raw resources, whereas India and China, our competitors, produce their own.
- Imports of raw materials carry a significant burden of fees and taxes.
- Due to the regular increases in gas prices, it is difficult for us to adapt prices.
- Sadly, this sector still lacks the resources to employ advanced industrial engineering methods, a skilled workforce, necessary equipment, etc.
Final thoughts
From the discussion, you can see Bangladesh ceramic has the true potential to flourish more. As there is a demand for our ceramic products, we need to take measures to ensure tiles quality and ongoing success. Also, we expect our government to assist this industry to grow further.
