Textile and apparel export data
According to the latest data released by the General Administration of Customs on November 7, in U.S. dollars, due to factors such as inventory backlogs in major markets, declining demand, and reduced orders, the year-on-year and month-on-month declines in textile and clothing exports in October expanded, with clothing exports declining significantly. , down 17% year-on-year.
Textile and clothing exports in RMB: From January to October 2022, the cumulative exports of textiles and clothing were 1.8007 billion yuan, an increase of 8.4% over the same period last year (the same below), of which textile exports were 825.95 billion yuan, an increase of 8.4%, and clothing exports were 974.75 billion yuan. An increase of 8.4%. In October, textile and clothing exports were 173.42 billion yuan, a decrease of 7.3%, and a month-on-month decrease of 8.9%. Among them, textile exports were 78.75 billion yuan, a decrease of 2.6%, and a month-on-month decrease of 3.8%. Clothing exports were 94.67 billion yuan, a decrease of 11%, and a month-on-month decrease of 12.7%.
From the above data, we can see that clothing exports declined in October. Faced with such severe foreign trade data, let’s take a look at what’s causing it?
01Orders are delayed, textile and clothing exports are affected
In the first half of this year, the domestic epidemic spread in many places, causing the entire textile market to come to a standstill, and orders were delayed after factories were shut down. The entire textile and apparel industry chain has been disrupted, and customers have experienced order cancellations and claims. Subsequently, the epidemic was effectively controlled, but the recovery of the entire industry chain was relatively slow, resulting in delays in the production of clothing for each season. In addition, under the influence of the epidemic, the global economy is sluggish and uncertainties have increased sharply, causing terminal apparel companies to become more cautious about declines, extend their wait-and-see time, and postpone orders.
02October “Christmas Season” orders are coming to an end
For export orders, the “Christmas season” also has a great impact, so the demand in the second half of the year is greater. It takes at least three months for an export order to be made from the time the garment company places the order to the moment it is made into garments for sale. In order to sell ready-made garments in time for the Christmas shopping season in December, orders must begin at least in September. Therefore, the weaving market reported a significant increase in foreign trade orders in September. In October, most of the orders were supplementary orders and duplicate orders, and the quantity was smaller than in September. This is why the weaving market can clearly feel that foreign trade orders were issued sporadically in October, and the follow-up of new orders was slightly weak.
03China’s global textile and apparel export share has dropped significantly
China is the largest market for global textile and apparel exports. However, in recent years, with the rapid rise in labor costs in China and the development of markets such as Southeast Asia, China’s market share has declined. The picture below shows the status of global textile and apparel exports before the outbreak. However, since the outbreak of the epidemic, global trade has undergone certain changes due to the impact of shipping costs, epidemic prevention and control measures, trade wars, etc.
China’s share of the global textile and apparel export market reached 38.2% in 2015 and has since declined, falling to 33.9% in 2019. While my country’s export share is declining, the export share of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh has grown by more than 30%, and Turkey has also achieved a growth of 26.6%. It can be seen that my country’s clothing foreign trade orders have shifted significantly. Especially under the influence of the epidemic last year, high shipping costs and global inflation caused orders returning to the country to shift again, either to cheaper areas, to geographically closer areas, or to markets with a more stable trade environment. .
From the perspective of downstream demand, after last year’s substantial recovery growth in demand, this year against the backdrop of complex international situations such as rising inflation, slowing global economic growth, and the Russia-Ukraine war, global demand for textiles and clothing has weakened, which has in turn affected various industries. Market imports and exports are affected. After May, the global economic recession is expected to gradually increase. After a wave of explosive growth, it gradually returns to rationality. However, the growth rate of the export market also gradually slows down, especially after October, the foreign trade market also gradually became weak.
In the future, my country’s textile and apparel exports will still face great challenges. However, in the second half of the year, as sea freight rates gradually “cooled”, a small part of the transferred orders returned. Coupled with the recovery of the economy, my country’s textile foreign trade exports still have certain advantages, and opportunities may come later.
</p
