Pick out the main features of this bar chart for your overview, write your report on a 20-minute timer, then compare it with a band-8 model answer.
You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.
The chart below shows the value of clothing exports from five countries in 2000, 2010 and 2020.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Write at least 150 words.
| Category | 2000 | 2010 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | 36 | 130 | 155 |
| Bangladesh | 5 | 15 | 31 |
| Vietnam | 2 | 10 | 29 |
| Turkey | 7 | 12 | 16 |
| Italy | 13 | 15 | 13 |
GoPrep wrote this practice question in the style of the exam. It is not an official IELTS question.
An overview names the main trends or differences in one or two sentences, without numbers. These are the features a strong answer picks out:
Spend the first few minutes planning, then write.
0 words of 150 minimum
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Write your own answer first, then compare: how it answers the exact question, what each paragraph does, and which phrases you could borrow.
The bar chart compares the value of clothing exports from China, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Turkey and Italy in 2000, 2010 and 2020, in billions of dollars.
Overall, exports rose in four of the five countries, with Italy the exception, and China remained by far the largest exporter. The strongest relative growth came from Bangladesh and Vietnam.
China's exports increased from $36 billion in 2000 to $130 billion in 2010 and $155 billion in 2020, more than four times the starting level. Despite this, its growth slowed considerably after 2010.
Bangladesh and Vietnam grew from a low base. Bangladesh exported $5 billion in 2000, $15 billion in 2010 and $31 billion in 2020. Vietnam's figure was just $2 billion in 2000, but rose to $10 billion in 2010 and $29 billion in 2020, almost fifteen times its original value, so that it nearly matched Bangladesh.
Turkey's exports rose from $7 billion to $12 billion and then $16 billion, a steady increase. Italy, however, began at $13 billion in 2000, peaked at $15 billion in 2010, and then fell back to $13 billion in 2020, exactly the same as at the start.
| Phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| clothing exports | garments sold abroad |
| dominate | be much bigger than others |
| grow rapidly | expand quickly |
| remain static | stay the same |
| fifteen-fold increase | growth to fifteen times |
| by 2020 | by that year |
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