Changing textile and apparel sector adapting to ‘New Normal’

Given the vicissitudes of the world’s textile and apparel supply chain, China is changing its strategy to counter what Chinese experts describe as the “new normal.”

The ‘new normal’ situation implies the reality of slower growth rates in China’s economy, coupled with spiralling costs that are going out of control, said Zhang Tao, the Secretary General of the Sub-Council of Textile Industry (CCPIT).

Tao cited the rising production and labour costs in the textile and apparel industry wages have raised over the years from a double-digit monthly salary to today’s nearly $700 per month as the cause of China’s “losing the competitive edge in mass production.” China’s costs have risen dramatically and exceed those in of many other Southeast Asian countries, including Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam.
Still, even as China imports textile and apparel products from Bangladesh, Pakistan and other countries, textile and apparel exports continue to be the number one contributor to China’s foreign trade, with China’s biggest markets the United States, the European Union and Japan. Also, many Southeast Asian exporters import China-made fabrics and re-export them after further processing.

Last year, China processed approximately 10 million tonnes of cotton, 60% of which was grown locally. The remainder was imported from countries including the United States, India and Pakistan.

Fonte: Pakistan Textile Journal