Abstract
Reflecting the global economic slowdown, Chinese textile and clothing exports
were down by 11% in the first six months of 2009 after growing by 8.2% in 2008
and 18.9% in 2007. In the US market, in contrast to the general trend, sales
of Chinese textiles and clothing in the first half of 2009 advanced by 3.9%.
However, growth should have been faster, after the removal of safeguard quotas
restricting US imports of several products from China at the end of the
previous year. In the EU, imports from China grew by 12.7% in 2008 after the
EU removed quotas at the end of 2007. In China' s domestic market, textile
imports fell in 2008 although production by the Chinese industry grew
moderately, and continued to grow in the first half of 2009.
In Hong Kong, domestic exports of textiles and clothing fell sharply in 2008
while the share of re-exports in total exports reached almost 90%. In the
first half of 2009, sales of Hong Kong textiles and clothing in the US market
plummeted by 76% as buyers switched to China following the elimination of
quota restrictions.
In Japan, 2008 was a poor year for manufacturers and exporters. Exports to
five of the country' s six largest markets fell - as did exports of nine of its
ten biggest selling products. Furthermore, domestic wholesale sales of textile
products fell for the 11th consecutive year. Domestic production, meanwhile,
fell by 8.9% after declining by 5.4% in 2007 and 4.2% in 2006. Imports also
declined.
South Korean textile and clothing exports fell by a modest 1.0% in 2008, due
to a fall in clothing sales. Textile exports rose by a minimal 0.3% as weaker
demand in the EU and the USA was offset by large increases in sales to
Indonesia, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Despite the drop in
clothing exports, however, production continued to rise in 2008, as a result
of vigorous domestic demand.
In Taiwan, export demand fell in 2008, having remained steady during 2005-07.
The fall was due, in part, to the global economic slowdown - which led to a
reduction in orders from China and other major Asian markets. Textile and
clothing production, meanwhile, fell at a much more alarming rate. Textile
output was down by 11.5% and clothing output by 19.2%. To combat falling
sales, Taiwanese manufacturers have concentrated increasingly on the
production of specialised textiles with higher added value.
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