Vietnam's garment exports fell 19.6 percent in the first two months of this year to 4.55 billion U.S. dollars due to a decline in orders from key markets, according to the country's General Statistics Office.

Textile and garment exports showed the first signs of decline in the fourth quarter last year, said the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association, warning that export weakness would persist through the first quarter of this year amid worsening global demand.

Vietnamese garment makers continue to report shrinking order books, said the country's textile and apparel association, the number of orders for the first quarter have slumped between 25 and 27 percent from the same period last year.

Higher cotton prices have also added to the difficulties faced by the industry, said Cao Huu Hieu, general director of top textiles and garment maker Vinatex, explaining that manufacturers took a massive hit on their balance sheets due to input cost pressure.

Meanwhile, the weakening of the Vietnamese dong currency has made imports of raw materials more expensive, making it more difficult for garment exporters to honor their orders which are typically booked months before.

Textiles and garments are the Southeast Asian country's second-largest export earner, after smartphones and electronics.

Vietnam saw 44 billion U.S. dollars of apparel exports last year, which fell short of its targeted 47 billion U.S. dollars, government data showed.

Despite all the challenges, textile and garment businesses are looking to the second half of the year with optimism as inflation pressure on major export markets like the United States and Europe would ease, combined with benefits from new-generation free trade agreements, which could lead to a return to growth of the demand side.

The textile and apparel association forecast exports to stand above 45 billion U.S. dollars in 2023.