Zhejiang Silk Is Going Through A Cold Winter.

Zhejiang silk World-renowned, but since 2013, on the one hand, the domestic market is weak in consumption and foreign trade orders are insufficient. On the other hand, with the rising of cocoon prices, the silk industry reproduces the situation of "flour is too expensive", and some silk production enterprises are facing a situation of shutting down production and reducing production. The Zhejiang silk, which once was magnificent, is encountering the cold winter.

　 The silk market is not booming.

Hangzhou China silk city is the largest silk trading center in the country. There are more than 600 shops, which are large and small. They are engaged in silk fabrics, scarves, handicrafts and silk. clothing Wholesale and retail business.

Although it was in the peak season of consumption, the reporter saw a boss sitting in a pile of silk in a silk shop. cloth In the heap, nothing can be done. "This year's silk business is too bad to do, raw silk prices and other costs have been rising, retail prices are not up, orders are lower than last year at least 30%." According to the boss, in order to save costs, not long ago, he dismissed a salesperson and began to manage business himself.

A salesperson from another brand silk enterprise told reporters that her sales in this year decreased by at least 20% compared with the same period last year. "Customers see more and buy less." The salesperson said that compared with the retail stores, the company opened up more stores in Hangzhou Tower, but the purchase volume of high-end silk products as gifts was greatly reduced, and it was difficult to sell a few days a day.

After visiting many merchants in the market, we found that most of the business operators of silk products have declined to varying degrees this year. During the visit, reporters also met with India businessmen who were buying silk. He told reporters that he had done silk business in India in recent years, but because of the decline in local demand for silk this year, his purchase volume has also decreased. "In the first two years, I bought nearly $2 million a month, and now I have a monthly purchase of up to $1 million." He said.

　 The silk industry is crowded at both ends.

Facing the current situation of the silk market this year, Huzhou Spin Ling Lanfang, chairman of the association and chairman of the Silk Road Group, told reporters that as a leading enterprise in the national silk industry, he suffered many troubles. The company specializes in high-end export products, but in addition to Qiandao Lake, Zhejiang has no raw materials to produce high-quality silk. In addition, the rising cost, the shortage of skilled workers and the backwardness of equipment have led to the rapid decline of Zhejiang's silk reeling industry. In just 10 years, Zhejiang's cocoon silk output dropped from fourth to 20% in the country, accounting for 10%.

Along with the reduction of orders, the price of silkworm cocoons as raw materials is rising and rising again. The statistics of the Silk Association of Huzhou Textile Industry Association show that in 2013, the purchase price of spring cocoons in the province was generally higher than that of the National Cocoon wire office at 1750 yuan per guide, and the price in Hangzhou Jiaxing Lake area was more than 2200 yuan per load, and the price in each area of Huzhou was over 2400 yuan. Li Lingling, Secretary General of the association, calculated that the price of silkworm cocoons per ton in Huzhou area was about 125 thousand yuan per ton when the cocoon was roasted into dry cocoon. According to this calculation, the cost of raw silk cocoons was 385 thousand yuan per ton, plus the processing cost of 75 thousand yuan per ton, such as labor, water and fuel, minus 35 thousand to 40 thousand yuan per ton of by-products, and the actual cost per ton of raw silk had reached 420 thousand to 425 thousand yuan. At present, the raw silk price in the market is less than 400 thousand yuan per ton, so the reeling enterprises lose 25 thousand yuan per reeling per ton of silk. Even from the Qiandao Lake, Yunnan, Sichuan and other places to buy better quality cocoons, although the reeling raw silk can sell more than 10 thousand yuan per ton, but after the logistics cost and loss, the loss per ton of raw silk is still up to 20 thousand yuan.

Market downturn, demand is not strong, coupled with the steady increase in raw silk prices, but also make silk enterprises net profit and gross margin of products has declined. Jiaxin silk is the only silk clothing enterprise listed in A shares in Zhejiang province. From the financial data released by the company, the reporter found that the net profit of the company in the first three years has increased every year, but the growth rate is decreasing year by year. The net profit growth rate in 2010 was 18.75%, 14.40% in 2011 and 5.04% in 2012, while the net profit in the first half of this year showed a negative growth of -6.02%. In addition, the gross profit margin of silk, silk, clothing and other products also declined.

At the same time, influenced by the rising price of raw silk, the cost pressures of downstream industries such as weaving, clothing, silk quilt and home textiles in Zhejiang are obviously greater than those in previous years.

Silk enterprises seek transformation

China's silk production accounts for more than 75% of the world's total. Zhejiang is a strong silk province. It ranks first in the country's export and quality is the first. Besides the production of cocoon silk, the total silk products such as fabrics, garments, home textiles and so on are the first in the country. The industry is mainly distributed in 4 cities of Hangzhou, jiaxhu and Shaoxing. The silk and raw silk produced in Huzhou account for 1/3 of the whole country. The export of silk garments in Hangzhou and Jiaxing accounts for more than half of the whole country. Clothes & Accessories And home textile production and exports accounted for more than half of the country's similar products. Silk is obviously the dominant traditional industry in Zhejiang.

However, in the interview, we know that the advantages of the dominant industries are no longer the bottleneck.

In recent years, the phenomenon of homogenization and competition of low-end products in Zhejiang silk is very serious, resulting in many silk enterprises in the predicament of high cost, low efficiency and high risk. Many enterprises stop production and business, which seriously affects the sustainable development of silk industry.

Faced with many difficulties, some textile enterprises in Zhejiang have begun to seek their own way of transformation and self-help based on their own actual conditions, or by taking the road of high-end, scale and differentiation, or through technological innovation and transfer of basic industries. For example: Dali and WAN Shi Li put silk together closely with culture and tourism industry, and walked out of a new path. While upgrading the industrial chain, BABEI was thinking about the industrialization of silkworms and extending to the front of the industrial chain; Tongxiang silk was being criticized by industry groups, determined to rebuild credibility and let the consumers regress their confidence; Tonglu silk knitting enterprises were also trying their best to improve technology and make fine products.

In recent years, some large silk enterprises in Hangzhou jiaxhu region have shifted the basic processes in the silk industry chain to the western regions, relying on the relatively low resources and labor costs in the western region to reduce costs and enhance the market competitiveness of enterprises. In this regard, Huzhou's silk steps are particularly evident. Dongli silk and Hua Qin silk, the two silk enterprises have their own branches in Luliang, Yunnan and Baise, Guangxi respectively. We should take advantage of raw material resources and human resources in the west to give full play to our technological advantages and market advantages.

"The main direction of the transformation and upgrading of the silk industry is to increase the added value of the products, move the production process of the Silk Road chain and the middle road to the western region, put the added value and brand finishing links in the eastern region, and effectively integrate the two sides, which is the path of transformation and upgrading of the silk industry." Ling Lanfang said that the domestic textile industry is facing many difficulties, but also ushered in the opportunity of industry consolidation and upgrading. There are many breakthroughs in the innovation of the whole industry, including silkworm industrialization and reeling intelligence. Weaving Digitalization, application of transboundary and so on, as long as there is a major breakthrough will cause the silk industry revolution, bring rolling dividends.