LONDON/NEW YORK CITY: Garment manufacturers in Bangladesh are facing growing uncertainty as some suppliers to Walmart have placed orders on hold in response to a proposed 35 percent U.S. tariff on Bangladeshi textiles, multiple factory owners told Reuters.

Correspondence seen by Reuters confirms that at least one supplier, Classic Fashion, has advised manufacturers to pause production until the tariff situation becomes clearer. The disruption comes just weeks before the August 1 deadline for the proposed tariff hike, announced by President Donald Trump.

Iqbal Hossain, managing director of Patriot Eco Apparel Ltd, said an order for nearly 1 million swim shorts had been halted this week. "As we discussed please hold all below Spring season orders we are discussing here due to heavy tariff  percent imposed for USA imports," Faruk Saikat, assistant merchandising manager at Classic Fashion, wrote in an email seen by Reuters.

Saikat clarified that Classic Fashion made the decision, not Walmart directly. The retailer did not respond to a request for comment.

Bangladesh, the third-largest apparel exporter to the U.S., relies heavily on the garment sector, which accounts for 80 percent of export earnings and about 10 percent of the country's GDP. Factory owners fear a sharp drop in orders if the 35 percent tariff goes into effect, saying the cost burden would be impossible to absorb.

"If the 35 percent tariff remains for Bangladesh, that will be very tough to sustain, honestly speaking," said Mohiuddin Rubel, managing director at Denim Expert Ltd in Dhaka. His firm supplies jeans to H&M and other brands.

Rubel added that while some clients may ask him to cover part of the cost, it wouldn't be financially viable. Manufacturers already absorbed part of a 10 percent blanket tariff imposed by the U.S. on April 2.

"Only probably the big, big companies can a little bit sustain (tariffs), but not the small and medium companies," Rubel said.

Since Trump returned to office, retailers have been front-loading orders in anticipation of new tariffs. Levi's said this week that it already has 60 percent of the inventory needed for the remainder of 2025.

According to U.S. International Trade Commission data, U.S. clothing imports from Bangladesh totaled US$3.38 billion in the first five months of 2025, a 21 percent increase from the same period last year.

Another Dhaka-based garment factory owner said a spring 2026 order of trousers for Walmart was delayed by a U.S. importer who asked to wait one more week before confirming the deal.

Hossain said he may seek more European buyers if the 35 percent tariff goes into effect—even if it means cutting prices to stay competitive.