Chinese Clothing Imports on the Rise In Iraq
As with other local markets around the world, availability of cheap Chinese-made clothing in Iraq has largely run the country’s secondhand-clothing merchants out of business.
Abu Ahmad blows puffs of smoke from his cigarette into the air while standing in front of a pile of used clothes he has spread out on the ground in Bab al-Sharqi, Baghdad. He admits to having experienced material losses recently due to a lack of clients. In fact, he does not make more than $600 per month from this trade, compared with double this amount in previous years.
“The new, cheap, ready-to-wear clothing that is imported from China and India is drowning the markets,” Ahmad told Al-Monitor. Meanwhile, his fellow traders provide additional reasons, such as the “security chaos” that prevents many people from shopping.
