AsemconnectVietnam - Right in the early days of the Lunar New Year of the Horse, hundreds of foreign businesses came to Vietnam to participate in the Vietnam International Textile and Garment Technology Exhibition 2026 (VIATT 2026), opening up great opportunities for Vietnam's key export industry.

The exhibition took place from February 26 to 28, 2026, at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center (SECC).
VIATT 2026 was a regional international trade exhibition specializing in yarn, fabric and textile accessories, garments, home textiles, textile technology and sewing machines, chaired by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, and organized in Vietnam by the Trade Promotion Agency in coordination with Messe Frankfurt Group (Germany).
Mr. Bui Quang Hung - Deputy Director of the Trade Promotion Agency, Ministry of Industry and Trade, said that in recent years, the Vietnamese textile and garment industry has made strong progress and is increasingly playing an important role in the growth of the economy. Among all current industrial export items, textiles and garments are the sector with the highest export value and growth rate, and are one of the key export sectors, playing a crucial role in the growth of the economy, accounting for 12-16% of the country's total export value.
According to Mr. Hung, in 2025, despite being a challenging year for the textile and garment industry, exports across the sector increased by approximately 5% compared to 2024, reaching an estimated value of 46 billion USD. The garment group continued to play a leading role, accounting for over 38 billion USD of total export value. Vietnamese textile and garment products are currently present in 138 markets worldwide, with the United States remaining the main market with an estimated export value of over 18 billion USD, an increase of approximately 10%.
However, in the face of global economic fluctuations and increasingly stringent demands for environmental standards, labor practices, traceability, and digital transformation, the textile and garment industry is compelled to continue innovating to adapt and achieve breakthroughs.
As the Vietnamese textile and garment industry enters a new phase of development – a strong shift from extensive to intensive growth, from processing to value-added enhancement, from traditional production to green and smart production – by connecting textile and garment companies from across Asia and Europe, VIATT 2026 is expected to facilitate Vietnamese textile and garment businesses in connecting with international businesses and participating in the production chains of global textile and garment companies.
This year, VIATT 2026 expanded its scale by 20% compared to 2025, from 15,000 m2 to 18,000 m2, bringing together nearly 1,000 booths from more than 450 domestic and international businesses from 21 countries and territories worldwide in the following sectors: garments; home textiles; technical textiles and non-woven fabrics; textile processing and printing technology.
Towards sustainable development
According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Vietnam aims to maintain textiles and garments as one of its key export industries, while encouraging the development of products that are sustainable, high-quality, and competitive in the international market.
To achieve this goal, businesses participating in VIATT 2026 were offering a platform for connecting value and promoting sustainable development through a dedicated exhibition area for environmentally friendly materials, sustainable production processes, and international certification standards – the Econogy Hub. This platform perfectly aligns with Vietnam's goal of building a circular textile economy by 2050, focusing on innovations such as organic fibers, recycled fibers, and environmentally friendly dyeing technologies.
As one of the leading textile exporting countries, garment manufacturers are currently focusing on developing sustainable fibers, innovative fabrics, and complete, fashionable, and creative designs. To meet this innovation trend, businesses are expanding their exhibition scope to include finished garments, giving fashion designers and manufacturers more options.
Alongside sustainable development initiatives, advanced technologies supporting optimization in design, production, and supply chain management—from AI-powered pattern simulation to modern automation systems—will contribute to enhancing the operational capacity of Vietnam's textile and garment industry, while opening up opportunities to access new markets and facilitate high-tech transformation for businesses.
In particular, the AI-powered design testing laboratory, equipped with advanced WiseEye fabric inspection technology, enables the automatic detection, classification, and evaluation of defects in textile materials.
VIATT 2026 was a great opportunity for businesses to find reputable partners and suppliers, promote trade relationships, participate more deeply in the global value chain, gradually increase the localization rate, proactively meet the diverse needs of domestic and international customers, comply with the rules of origin requirements of new generation Free Trade Agreements, enhance product added value, and contribute to promoting the development of Vietnam's textile and garment industry in line with the green and sustainable trends of the world.
CK
Source: VITIC/ thuehaiquan.tapchikinhtetaichinh.vn