Exports dropped alarmingly in the first month
In January, the textile and apparel trade volume was US$27.77 billion, a decrease of 10%, of which exports were US$25.54 billion, a decrease of 10.8%, and imports were US$2.16 billion, an increase of 0.1%. The trade surplus for the month was US$23.38 billion, a decrease of 11.6%.
Both volume and price of major categories of commodities fell
Exports fell sharply in the first month
In the first month of this year, textile and clothing exports dropped sharply by 10.8%, exceeding the national average decline of 3.3% in foreign trade. The reasons for the rapid decline are, on the one hand, that the recovery of demand in foreign markets has not yet been fully stabilized, and on the other hand, the rapid decline was due to the high base in the same period last year. Considering the impact of the long Spring Festival holiday on exports at the beginning of the year, the export data for the first month needs to be combined with the data for February or the first quarter for an overall analysis.
In January, textile exports were US$9.72 billion, down 7.8%, and clothing exports were US$15.82 billion, down 12.5%. Clothing exports fell more than textiles. Among them, the total export volume of knitted and woven garments fell by 12.1%, and the average export unit price fell by 1.2%. In textiles, exports of yarn, fabrics and finished products decreased by 5.9%, 10.6% and 4.9% respectively.
Processing trade saw the largest decline
Guangxi’s export growth is eye-catching
In January, general trade exports were US$19.35 billion, down 12.8%; processing trade exports were US$3.11 billion, down 21%; border small-amount trade exports were US$1.37 billion, down 3.1%. The negative contribution of the three trade modes to the overall export decline reached 10%, 2.8% and 0.2% respectively.
Exports from most provinces (cities and districts) fell in January, with all eastern regions experiencing negative growth except Guangdong, which grew by 2.2%. Provinces in the central and western regions experienced mixed gains and losses, among which Guangxi performed well, with exports increasing by nearly 50%, becoming the seventh province and autonomous region with the largest exports.
In addition, non-professional companies further occupy a prominent position in the export rankings. Among the top 20 export companies, there are 12 trading, logistics and service companies, including 7 companies with zero export volume in the same period last year.
Rapid decline in the EU
In January, my country’s exports to the EU fell rapidly. Exports in the month were US$5.17 billion, down 11.2%, of which textiles fell by 11.1% and clothing fell by 11.3%. The total export volume of knitted and woven garments fell by 14.5%, and the average export unit price increased by 3.5%.
There is a bright future for the United States
In January, my country’s exports to the United States were US$4.02 billion, a decrease of 2.7%, of which textiles increased by 4.3%, clothing decreased by 5%, the total export volume of knitted and woven clothing decreased by 3.1%, and the average unit price of exports decreased by 3%. Although exports to the United States have declined, the decline is far smaller than that of the European Union and Japan, and also smaller than that of some emerging markets, indicating that the U.S. market is gradually stabilizing and exports to the United States can be expected to grow in the future.
Unit price increase for ASEAN
ASEAN is the only major market that achieved growth in my country’s exports in January. Exports for the month were US$3.36 billion, an increase of 6.2%, of which textiles increased by 2.8% and clothing increased by 11.4%. The total export volume of knitted and woven garments increased by 3.7%, and the average export unit price increased by 5.3%.
Continued downturn in Japan
Compared with Europe and the United States, the Japanese market performs the most sluggishly. In January, my country’s exports to Japan were US$1.82 billion, a drop of 26.7%, of which textiles dropped by 21.2% and clothing dropped by 27.9%. The total export volume of knitted and woven garments fell by 30%, and the average export unit price increased slightly by 2.2%.
Clothing imports increase, prices fall
In January, textile and clothing imports were US$1.64 billion and US$530 million respectively. Textile imports fell by 0.2%, and clothing increased by 1.1%. Among textiles, fabrics and finished products mainly declined. Cotton and woolen yarns drove the overall growth of yarn imports by 3.6%. Among clothing, the total import volume of knitted and woven clothing increased by 33.2%, and the average unit price of imports fell by 23.1%. Cotton imports continued to fall, with only 161,000 tons imported in January, a decrease of 45%, and the average unit price of imports fell by 15.9%.
Cotton prices at home and abroad gradually narrowed
In January, the cotton market remained weak, with overall prices stable and slightly declining. The industry’s bearish mentality was obvious and trading volume was sparse. Cotton companies did not ship much before the holiday, and some companies holding Xinjiang cotton were reluctant to sell. In January, the average monthly transaction price of the China Cotton Price Index (CC Index 3128B) was 13,539 yuan/ton, a month-on-month decrease of 204 yuan, or 1.5%. During the same period, the monthly average price of China’s imported cotton price index (FC Index M) was 70.14 cents/pound, down 1.41 cents from the previous month. Under a 1% tariff, it was equivalent to RMB 10,996/ton, which was lower than the Chinese cotton price index of 2,543 yuan during the same period. Under the sliding tax, it is equivalent to RMB 13,552/ton, which is 14 yuan higher than the China cotton price index during the same period. The overall price difference between domestic and foreign cotton has not changed much, and the quasi-duty price of foreign cotton is still slightly higher than that of domestic cotton.
International market data statistics
EU: Imports from China grew below average in 2014
According to EU customs statistics, in 2014, the EU imported US$135.48 billion in textiles and clothing from the world, an increase of 8.5%. The EU imported a total of US$51.13 billion in textile and clothing products from China, an increase of 7%, which was lower than the average growth rate; and imported US$12.11 billion of textile and clothing products from ASEAN, an increase of 12.8%. China’s textile and apparel market share in the EU was 37.7%, a year-on-year decrease of 0.6 percentage points; ASEAN clothing accounted for 8.9% of the EU market share, an increase of 0.3 percentage points from the same period last year; Turkey and Bangladesh each accounted for 13.4% and 11.2%, of which Bangladesh The country’s share expanded by 0.4 percentage points.
United States: 2014��Imports from China increased slightly
According to U.S. Customs statistics, in 2014, the United States imported US$117.39 billion in textiles and clothing from the world, an increase of 3%. Textile and apparel imports from China amounted to US$44.82 billion, an increase of 1.5%. Imports from ASEAN amounted to US$22.42 billion, an increase of 4%. The market share of Chinese products in the United States was 38.2%, down 0.6 percentage points from the same period in 2013. ASEAN’s market share in the United States was 19.1%, an increase of 0.2 percentage points from the same period in 2013.
Japan: The share of Chinese products has fallen sharply
According to Japanese customs statistics, in January 2015, Japan’s total imports of textiles and clothing for the whole year were US$3.26 billion, a decrease of 16.3%. Among them, textile imports from China were US$2.12 billion, a decrease of 23.2%, a drop greater than the average, and imports from ASEAN were US$680 million, an increase of 6.8%. China’s share of the Japanese market continued to decline, accounting for only 65.1% that month, down nearly 5 percentage points from the same period last year, while ASEAN’s share rose to 21% during the same period, an increase of nearly 5 percentage points.