The International Textile Manufacturers Federation (ITMF) recently released its 45th International Textile Machinery Shipment Statistics report. This report covers six areas of textile machinery: spinning machinery, elastic yarn machinery, weaving machinery, circular knitting machinery, flat knitting machinery, and dyeing and finishing machinery. The 2022 survey report was compiled in cooperation with over 200 textile machinery manufacturers and represents a comprehensive level of global textile machinery production.
According to the report, in 2022, the shipment volume of textile machinery in most sub-sectors decreased, except for spinning machinery. The global delivery volume (year-on-year) of ring spinning machines, air-jet spinning machines, and woolen-type fiber spinning machines increased by 27%, 85%, and 195% respectively. The delivery volume of elastic yarn machines decreased by 13%, and the delivery volume of shuttleless weaving machines decreased by 23%. The delivery volume of circular knitting machines decreased by 27%, while the delivery volume of flat knitting machines decreased by 24%. The total delivery volume of dyeing and finishing machinery decreased by an average of 28%.
In 2022, the total delivery volume of ring spinning machines increased by 2.1 million spindles, reaching 9.76 million spindles. Most of the new machines were shipped to Asia and Oceania (86%), and the delivery volume in this region increased by 21% compared to 2021. Europe (including Turkey) and North America followed closely behind. Although the delivery volume in Africa was relatively small, the region ranked fourth, with the strongest year-on-year growth, increasing by 290% (mainly to Egypt). China, India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Turkey, and Uzbekistan are the six major investing countries in the ring spinning machine market.
In 2022, the global shipment volume of air-jet spinning machines was 1.28 million units. Compared to 2021, this increased by 587,000 units. 87% of the machines globally were shipped to Asia and Oceania, with deliveries increasing by 91% to 1.1 million units. China, India, and Turkey are the three largest investors in global air-jet spinning, with investment growth of 67%, 261%, and 91% respectively. Except for Vietnam and Brazil, the seventh and eighth largest destinations in 2022, the delivery volume of air-jet spinning machines increased in all major destination countries. Compared to 2021, the shipment volume of air-jet spinning machines in these two countries decreased by 34% and 30% respectively (approximately 15,000 units in each case).
The global shipment volume of woolen-type fiber spinning machines increased from 31,600 spindles in 2021 to 93,000 spindles in 2022 (an increase of 195%). This impact is mainly due to the increase in deliveries to Asia and Oceania, and an increase in investment of 435%. Of these, 21% of the machines were shipped to China, 20% to Uzbekistan, and 15% to Iran.
In 2022, the global shipment volume of shuttleless weaving machines decreased by 23% to 114,000 units. The delivery volume of air-jet weaving machines and water-jet weaving machines decreased by 13% and 38.4% respectively, to 39,000 units and 46,600 units respectively. The number of rapier/projectile weaving machines increased by 5.3% to 28,300 units. The main export destinations for shuttleless weaving machines in 2022 were Asia and Oceania, accounting for 93% of global deliveries.
95% of air-jet weaving machines, 85% of rapier/projectile weaving machines, and 97% of water-jet weaving machines were shipped to this region globally. The main investors in air-jet weaving machines and water-jet weaving machines are China. The main investor in rapier/projectile weaving machines is India, reaching 11,400 units (a 70% increase compared to 2021).
In 2022, the global shipment volume of circular knitting machines decreased by 27% to 28,651 units. Asia and Oceania are the leading global investors in circular knitting machines, accounting for 77% of global shipments. China is the most popular destination, with deliveries accounting for 45% of all deliveries (i.e., 9,930 units), a decrease of 55% compared to 2021. India and Bangladesh ranked second and third with 3,105 and 2,644 units respectively.
In 2022, the shipment volume of electronic flat knitting machines decreased by 24% to 72,600 units. Asia and Oceania are the main destinations for electronic flat knitting machines, accounting for 83% of global shipments. Despite a 41% decrease in investment, China remains the world's largest investor, accounting for 63% of total shipments, with shipments decreasing from 67,700 units in 2021 to 39,600 units in 2022.
In the continuous fabric finishing equipment market, the shipment volume of stenters decreased by 35% from 2750 units in 2021 to 1780 units in 2022. This statistic includes an estimate of the total number of stenters shipped by companies that did not participate in the ITMF survey, providing a better understanding of the global market size of dyeing and finishing machinery.
Participating companies reported that all other machine categories covered in the report decreased (between 2.5% and 81%, with the smallest decrease being for slack dryers/tumblers and the largest for bleaching lines), but singeing lines increased from 4 units to 22 units. In the intermittent fabric finishing equipment market, the shipment volume of pad dyeing machines/beam dyeing machines and airflow dyeing machines decreased by 35% and 45% respectively, to 707 units and 675 units. In 2022, the delivery volume of overflow dyeing machines increased by 4% to 1714 units.
