The country's bicycle industry is leaping forward amid a rise in local demand and export orders amid the pandemic at global level.
Its demand is growing as the vehicles are environment-friendly, social distance-friendly and safer mode of communication. The market is fast growing and the share of locally manufactured bicycles is increasing.
According to Bangladesh Bicycle Merchant Assembling and Importers Association (BBMAIA), the local market demand for bicycles is estimated at Tk 1,200 crore a year with a significant increase in annual demand.
Kamaruzzaman Kamal, marketing director of local bicycle maker Pran RFL, said bicycle is safer and environment-friendly than other public transport. 'Now-a-days, traffic jam is increasing. That's why people are using bicycles as an easy mode of communication,' he said.
Currently, Bangladeshi domestic market is dominated by imports from India and China, with 60 per cent of the bicycles being imported to meet local demand. However, exports of bicycles from the country have been rising significantly in the recent years.
Manufacturers exported bicycles worth around $130 million in the financial year 2020-21, which is 50 per cent higher than that of the previous year, according to the Export Promotion Bureau data.
'We are not able to build the backward linkage industry which is very necessary and if we can do it, export volume of bicycles will increase,' Kamaruzzaman said. There are now three major exporters in the bicycle industry with Meghna Group being the largest. Pran-RFL Group also exports bicycles under the brand name Duranta Bikes. It is relatively new in the market having started in 2015. The other major exporter is Alita Bangladesh, which is a Taiwan-based company in the Chittagong Export Processing Zone.
Manufacturers are hopeful of expanding and diversifying their product range, particularly to the European markets. The European Union countries are one of the biggest markets for bicycles, where consumers buy around 18 million units a year.
As per Eurostat statistics for 2017, Bangladesh became the third-largest exporter of bicycles to the UK and the EU. AHM Ferdous, general manager of Alita Bangladesh Limited, said that the prospect of the industry was very bright due to manifold benefits of bicycles.
But a rise in raw material prices on the international market has slowed down the business in recent times, he added. According to the bicycle merchants association (BBMAIA) about 30 to 40 per cent of the raw materials for making bicycles in Bangladesh comes from China, India, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam. Its import duties on raw materials range from 10 per cent to 25 per cent to lead to higher cost.
The duty on spare parts is even high and parts such as brakes, gears and chains range around 55 per cent, he said adding there were a few items such as bicycle frame, tyre, rim and spoke being made locally.
The local manufacturers are facing difficulty to compete with foreign supplies in domestic market, an official of the association said. He said China has imposed anti-dumping duty, we have good opportunities to grab the Europe market after the outbreak of coronavirus.
