Vietnamese garment and textile companies reported a 20% decline in new orders over the past three months after demand from overseas customers fell.

“New orders have declined about 20% since October due to a slump in demand from overseas partners,” Le Quoc An, chairman of the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association, said Wednesday. Shipments this year will reach US$9.1 billion, lower than the $9.5 billion target, An said.

Exports, tourism and services in the Southeast Asian nation have been suffering because of the global turmoil, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said on November 27. To bolster the economy, the government cut interest rates five times since October 20 to 8.5% from 14% and plans to pump at least $1 billion into an economic stimulus plan.

Thanh Cong Textile Garment Joint-Stock Co. Wednesday dropped 2.4% to VND8,200 on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange, Vietnam’s main bourse. Mirae Joint-Stock Co. fell 3.6% to VND5,400, while Saigon Fishing Net Joint-Stock Co. plummeted 4.9% to VND9,700 on the exchange.

On the Hanoi Securities Trading Center, the country’s second bourse, Phu Thinh-Nha Be Garment Joint-Stock Co. declined 0.6% to VND16,000, and Mirae Fiber Joint-Stock Co. lost 5.9% to close at VND6,400. (Bloomberg)