Recently, data released by the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Textiles shows that in the first half of the year, China's textile and apparel industry overcame the impact of global foreign exchange market fluctuations and international shipping difficulties, achieving better-than-expected export results. The supply chain has accelerated its transformation and upgrading, and its adaptability to changes in overseas markets is constantly strengthening. In the first half of the year, China's textile and apparel exports totaled US$143.24 billion, a year-on-year increase of 1.6%. Among them, textile exports increased by 3.3% year-on-year, while apparel exports remained flat. Exports to the United States increased by 5.1%, and exports to ASEAN increased by 9.5%.
Against the global backdrop of intensifying global trade protectionism, increasingly tense geopolitical conflicts, and currency devaluation in multiple countries, how are other major textile and apparel exporting countries faring?
Vietnam: Textile industry exports expected to see strong growth in the second half of the year, reaching approximately US$19.5 billion in the first half.
According to data from the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade, textile industry exports in the first half of this year reached approximately US$19.5 billion. This includes US$16.3 billion in textile and apparel exports (a 3% increase), US$2.16 billion in textile fibers (a 4.7% increase), and over US$1 billion in various raw materials and accessories (an 11.1% increase). The textile industry aims to achieve US$44 billion in exports for the entire year.
Vu Duc Giang, chairman of the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS), said that because major export markets are witnessing economic recovery and inflation appears to be under control, this helps improve purchasing power. Therefore, many such enterprises have orders for October and November and hope to achieve higher business volumes in the final months to meet the US$44 billion export target this year.
Pakistan: Textile exports increased by 18% in May.
Data from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics shows that textile exports in May reached US$1.55 billion, a year-on-year increase of 18% and a month-on-month increase of 26%. In the first 11 months of fiscal year 23/24, Pakistan's textile and apparel exports totaled US$15.24 billion, a 1.41% increase compared to the same period last year.
India: Textile and apparel exports increased by 4.08% from April to June.
From April to June 2024, India's textile and apparel exports grew by 4.08%, reaching US$8.785 billion. Textile exports grew by 3.99%, and apparel exports grew by 4.20%. Despite the growth, the share of trade and procurement in the total value of India's merchandise exports fell to 7.99%.
Cambodia: Textile and garment exports surged 22% from January to May.
According to the Cambodian Ministry of Commerce, Cambodia's garment and textile exports reached US$3.628 billion in the first five months of this year, a year-on-year increase of 22%. Data shows that Cambodia's foreign trade increased significantly from January to May, up 12% year-on-year, with total trade exceeding US$21.6 billion compared to US$19.2 billion during the same period last year. During this period, Cambodia's export value was US$10.18 billion, up 10.8% year-on-year, and its import value was US$11.4 billion, up 13.6% year-on-year.
Sri Lanka: Garment and textile exports increased by 4.22% year-on-year in June.
Data from the Export Development Board (EDB) of Sri Lanka shows that in June, Sri Lanka's garment and textile export revenue increased by 4.22% year-on-year to US$446.54 million, with exports to the United States increasing by 13.28% year-on-year.
Uzbekistan: Textile exports decreased by 5.3% in the first half of the year.
According to official statistics, in the first half of 2024, Uzbekistan exported US$1.5 billion worth of textiles to 55 countries, a decrease of 5.3% year-on-year. The main components of these exports were finished products, accounting for 38.1% of total textile exports, and yarn, accounting for 46.2%.
During these six months, yarn exports reached US$708.6 million, higher than US$658 million last year. However, finished textile exports fell from US$662.6 million in 2023 to US$584 million. Knit fabric exports amounted to US$114.1 million, while in 2023 it was US$173.9 million. According to domestic media reports, fabric exports were US$75.1 million, lower than US$92.2 million last year, and sock exports were US$20.5 million, lower than US$31.4 million in 2023.
Turkey: Clothing and ready-made garment exports decreased by 14.6% year-on-year from January to April.
In April 2024, Turkey's clothing and ready-made garment exports decreased by 19% year-on-year to US$1.1 billion; from January to April, clothing and ready-made garment exports decreased by 14.6% year-on-year to US$5 billion. On the other hand, the textile and raw materials industry decreased by 8% year-on-year in April to US$845 million, and by 3.6% from January to April to US$3.8 billion. From January to April, the clothing and apparel industry ranked fifth in Turkey's overall exports, accounting for 6%, and the textile and raw materials industry ranked eighth, accounting for 4.5%. From January to April, Turkey's textile exports to the Asian continent increased by 15%.
Looking at Turkey's textile export data by product category, the top three are woven fabrics, technical textiles, and yarn, followed by knitted fabrics, home textiles, fibers, and the clothing sub-sector. During the period from January to April, the fiber product category saw the largest increase of 5%, while the home textile product category saw the largest decrease of 13%.
Bangladesh: Ready-made garment exports to the United States decreased by 12.31% in the first five months.
According to data released by the US Department of Commerce's Office of Textiles and Apparel, Bangladesh's ready-made garment exports to the United States decreased by 12.31% in the first five months of 2024, with a 622% decrease in export volume. Data shows that Bangladesh's garment exports to the United States decreased from US$3.31 billion in the same period in 2023 to US$2.9 billion in the first five months of 2024.
Data shows that Bangladesh's cotton textile garment exports to the United States decreased by 9.56% in the first five months of 2024 to US$2.01 billion. In addition, ready-made garment exports using man-made fibers decreased by 21.85% to US$750 million. Total US garment imports in the first five months of 2024 decreased by 6.0% to US$29.62 billion, down from US$31.51 billion in the same period in 2023.
