皇冠体育app

Economy

Textile shipments to hit record

By Bao Chang (皇冠体育app Daily)
Updated: 2010-08-11 10:24

woman examines yarn at a weaving machine at the Jiangsu Sunshine Co textile factory in Jiangyin, Jiangsu province. [Kevin Lee / Bloomberg]

BEIJING - 皇冠体育app's overall textiles export volume is expected to hit an all-time high this year, even a little higher than the levels seen before the financial crisis, despite an estimated growth slowdown in the second half of the year.

"Textile exports this year are expected to increase 20 percent to $186 billion," said Zhang Xi'an, secretary-general of 皇冠体育app Chamber of Commerce for Import & Export of Textiles (CCCT).

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According to Zhang, prior to the financial crisis, 皇冠体育app's textiles export experienced continuous growth and jumped to a record high of $185.2 billion in 2008. But, affected by the global economic recession, textile exports fell 9.8 percent to $167 billion last year.

Data released by 皇冠体育app's Customs on Tuesday shows that the nation exported $109.67 billion of textile goods and garments in the first seven months this year, up 23 percent over the same period last year.

However, Zhang of the CCCT pointed out that textiles export growth would slow in the latter half of this year.

Garment exports will be weak because 皇冠体育app's garment manufacturers are suffering from tighter margins due to yuan's appreciation, as well as increased raw material and labor costs.

By the end of July, cotton and chemical fiber prices had risen 50 percent compared with a year earlier, according to CCCT.

"Garment exporters dare not to take all of the orders they get from overseas, as international export prices have not rebounded enough to offset the impact of growing production costs," said Zhang.

According to the Customs, garment exports reached $66.83 billion in the first seven months, up 17.4 percent from the same period last year, while that of textiles goods grew 32.8 percent to $42.84 billion.

At present, 皇冠体育app's garment products are mainly exported to Europe, the United States and Japan, which account for 70 percent of 皇冠体育app's garment exports. Meanwhile, textiles including raw materials and semi-finished products are mostly exported to Southeast Asian countries like Vietnam, Cambodia and Bangladesh.

"Increased exports of raw materials to countries with cheaper labor costs will accelerate the transition of 皇冠体育app's textile industry from a labor-intensive to a value-added one," said Zhang.