HANOI, Jan. 21 (Xinhua) -- Laos plans to reap 20 million U.S. dollars from exporting garments to the United States in 2008, up 122.2 percent against 2007, Lao newspaper Vientiane Times reported Monday.

    Lao garment exports to the United States rose to 9 million dollars in 2007 from and 4.9 million dollars in 2006, and 1.9 million dollars in 2004, the newspaper quoted president of the Lao Garment Industrial Association, Onesy Boutsivongsakd, as saying.

    There are 100 garment factories in Laos, 61 of them are the association's members, he said, noting that garment currently tops of the list of Lao exports to the U.S. market, followed by handicraft, woodwork, beer, coffee and tea.

    Although the value of Lao exports to the United States has increased several times since Normal Trade Relations (NTR) between the two countries came into effect in 2004, Lao authorities are not satisfied with the scale of the rise, the newspaper said. Laos began NTR negotiations with the United States in 1997, and signed a Bilateral Trade Agreement in September 2003.

    Onesy Boutsivongsakd said his country's exports to the United States have reached only one tenth of the potential promised under the agreement.

    "The U.S. market has opened up for us, but our production levels are still too low to meet market demand. We have to work out how to increase production volume while enhancing the quality of our products to meet U.S. requirements," he said.