Since 2021, the operation of China's home textile industry has generally remained stable and orderly. Due to the impact of the epidemic in the previous year, the industry's growth rate has slowed down month by month, but it still remains within a reasonable growth range. Affected by factors such as raw material prices and disruptions to international shipping, the industry's cost pressure has generally increased, and profit margins have been squeezed. Both domestic and foreign markets have maintained stable growth. In the fourth quarter, the quality of industry operation improved, and the three major sub-sectors of bedding, towels, and textiles maintained a slow but stable operating trend.
Industry Growth Rate Continues to Slow
From January to November 2021, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, the operating income of 1,874 large-scale home textile enterprises nationwide increased by 7.69% year-on-year, with an average annual growth of 2.32%; the total profit decreased by 12.83% year-on-year, with an average annual growth of 3.01%. The tight warehousing and soaring container prices caused by the cascading effects of overseas shipping accidents have posed huge challenges to export enterprises; the continued global pandemic, the appreciation of the RMB, and other pressures have increased the external risks of export enterprises to a certain extent; and the continuous rise in the prices of raw materials such as cotton has had a significant impact on the profits of home textile enterprises.
Entering the third quarter, as home textile enterprises actively adjusted in response to the situation, and with the home textile industry entering the peak sales season, events such as Double Eleven achieved good results, and the industry's profit growth rate gradually picked up. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, from January to November, the domestic sales value of large-scale home textile enterprises nationwide increased by 8.29% year-on-year, with an average annual growth of 2.3%; the average annual growth rate of total profits was 3.01%.
Exports Maintain High-Speed Growth
From January to November, China's cumulative exports of home textile products reached US$43.574 billion, a year-on-year increase of 31.15%, a 20.79% increase over the same period in 2019, and an average annual growth rate of 9.87%. The current export volume has surpassed the 2019 annual level.
In terms of specific products, the export value of the six major categories of home textile products has shown significant year-on-year growth, with the growth rate of textile products and blankets being particularly prominent, exceeding the average by 5.47 and 4.97 percentage points, respectively.
In terms of export markets, Asia, North America, and Europe are the main export markets for China's home textile products. The three markets have strong anti-interference capabilities, and exports are stable. From January to November, exports increased by 18.62%, 30.82%, and 25.88% year-on-year, respectively. It is also worth noting that the Latin American market has recovered rapidly since 2021, with a current year-on-year growth rate of 74.75%.
Bedding Industry Shows Stable Growth
From January to November, the operating income of 988 large-scale bedding enterprises nationwide, as reported by the National Bureau of Statistics, increased by 11.93% year-on-year, with an average annual growth rate of 3.89%. In terms of monthly growth, excluding the impact of special factors related to the epidemic, the bedding industry basically maintained a growth level comparable to the previous year in the first three quarters, but saw a significant rebound in the fourth quarter, with monthly operating income growth continuously expanding. From January to November, the total profit of large-scale bedding enterprises increased by 3.45% year-on-year, with an average annual growth rate of 5.93%. The industry as a whole maintains stable growth.
Textile Industry Growth Rate Slows
Since 2021, the year-on-year growth rate of operating income and total profit of large-scale textile enterprises nationwide has gradually declined, showing negative growth in the second half of the year, but the year-on-year growth rate in November turned positive. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, from January to November, the operating income of 315 large-scale textile enterprises nationwide increased by 3.43% year-on-year, with an average annual growth rate of 5.80%. Among them, monthly operating income in November increased by 3% year-on-year, reversing the negative growth since June. From January to November, the total profit of large-scale textile enterprises decreased by 15% year-on-year, with the monthly decline gradually narrowing. Excluding special factors such as the epidemic, the average annual growth rate is 8.07%.
Towel Industry Under Pressure, Trending Towards Stability
According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, the operating income of 213 large-scale towel enterprises nationwide from January to November increased by 7.5% year-on-year, with an average annual growth rate of -3.6%, a decrease compared to the first three quarters. From January to November, the total profit decreased by 4.9% year-on-year, with an average annual decrease of 6.94%, a deepening decrease compared to the first three quarters. The situation eased in the fourth quarter, with the rate of decline narrowing month by month.
Currently, under the impact of the pandemic and the accelerating evolution of the century's changes, the external environment is becoming more complex, severe, and uncertain. In 2022, the home textile industry may face the disappearance of the low-base effect and tightening of the international trade environment. For the development of the home textile industry, it is necessary to implement tax cuts and fee reductions, maintain the basic stability of the RMB exchange rate, promote home textile enterprises to develop domestic and foreign trade with the same products, standards, and quality; develop trade channels, improve the supply chain, and promote the stable and healthy development of the home textile industry under the dual-circulation development pattern.
