China Wool Textile Industry Association: Operation Of Wool Textile Industry From January To November Last Year

　　 1、 Production and operation

　　 1. The overall benefit of the wool textile industry is stable

In 2023, the economic operation foundation of wool textile enterprises will be consolidated, and the main data will show growth.

As of November, the operating income of wool textile and dyeing and finishing industries above designated size has increased by 8.8% year on year, which is only second to the rapid growth in 2021.

Changes in operating income of wool textile, dyeing and finishing industries above designated size from 2015 to 2023

Note: Data of 2023 is up to November

From January to November, the total profit of wool textile and dyeing and finishing industries above designated size increased by 15.7% year on year, with an average profit margin of 4.0%.

Changes in average profit margin of wool textile, dyeing and finishing industries above designated size from 2015 to 2023

Note: Data of 2023 is up to November

　　 2. The production of different categories of wool products shows opposite trend

Judging from the growth changes of the two main types of wool textile products in the past decade, wool knitting and woven products basically show a reverse growth trend. This year, the two types of products continue to show different development trends. From January to November, the wool yarn output of enterprises above designated size increased by 4.3% year on year, while the wool fabric output declined by 6.2% year on year.

YoY change of wool yarn and wool fabric output from 2011 to 2003 (%)

Note: Data of 2023 is up to November

The connection between production and sales still needs to be further smooth. As of November, the inventory of finished products of wool textile and dyeing and finishing enterprises above designated size had increased by 3% year on year, accounting for 21% of current assets.

Changes in current assets and finished products from 2018 to 2023

Note: Data of 2023 is up to November

　　 3. Industry polarization intensifies, and enterprise pressure still exists

Although the overall situation is better, the production and operation pressure faced by the enterprise still exists. From January to November, among wool textile and dyeing and finishing enterprises above designated size, the number of loss making enterprises was 28.8%, only second to 32.5% in 2020. The polarization of enterprises has further intensified.

Change of industry loss area from 2015 to 2023

Note: Data of 2023 is up to November

　　 2、 Export situation

As of November, the total export volume of wool textile raw materials and products reached US $11.25 billion, down 1% year on year.

Export amount and year-on-year change of wool textile raw materials and products from 2018 to 2023

Note: Data of 2023 as of November

Source: China Customs

　　 1. Market situation adjustment of different categories of wool products

In 2023, the market situation of wool intermediate products will be better than that of finished products. From January to November, the export of wool sliver was 46000 tons, up 15.6% year on year, the export of wool yarn was 27000 tons, up 5.2% year on year, and the export of wool fabric was 66.92 million meters, basically flat year on year.

The market situation of wool textile products was affected by the situation of the terminal consumer market and geopolitical factors, and its performance was relatively weak throughout the year. From January to November, 56.22 million sweaters were exported, down 2.8% year on year, 17.39 million wool woven garments were exported, up 0.4% year on year, and about 740 million blankets were exported, up 0.8% year on year.

Export volume and year-on-year situation of main wool textile export categories from January to November 2023

Source: China Customs

　　 2. Multilateral wool textile trade is greatly affected by macroeconomic and other factors

In 2023, the overall export destination market of wool textile raw materials and products will not change much, and the United States, the European Union and ASEAN will still be the main export destinations. However, further observation was made on the export market of wool textile products with wool as the main raw material. Influenced by the international political and economic situation, the U.S. market accounted for 13.3%, 2.5 percentage points less than the same period last year; The export of wool textile products with wool as the main raw material to ASEAN accounted for 11.2%, down 1.1 percentage points from the same period last year.

Proportion of export value of wool textile products with wool as the main raw material to major export markets from January to November 2022 and 2023

Source: China Customs

Due to the poor global macroeconomic situation, this year's exports to both traditional and emerging wool textile markets showed a decline, and exports to the EU market only increased slightly. From January to November, exports of wool textile raw materials and products to the EU region increased by 0.3% year on year.

Year on year changes in export amount of main export destinations of wool textile raw materials and products from January to November 2023

Source: China Customs

　　 3、 Raw materials and production factors

From January to November, China's wool import volume was 272000 tons, up 2.5% year on year, and the import volume was 1.88 billion dollars, down 9.9% year on year. Among them, 232000 tons of greasy wool were imported, up 8.9% year on year. The quantity of wool imported from major wool producing countries has kept growing.

Changes in wool import volume and unit price in 2011-2023

Note: Data of 2023 is up to November

Source: China Customs

From the price of all kinds of wool textile raw materials, under the influence of exchange rate and demand, the unit price of wool import showed a downward trend during the year, while the unit price of wool slivers affected by export showed a monthly decline. The price of cashmere and other animal hair was relatively stable during the year.

Monthly import and export unit price of main wool raw materials from January to November 2023

Source: China Customs

　　 4、 Market analysis

Since 2023, the domestic and international wool textile consumer markets have been affected by the economic policy situation and consumer confidence. Consumer demand has not been further released, and the recovery space is still limited.

　　 1. Domestic retail consumption

In terms of domestic retail consumption, from January to November, retail sales of clothing, shoes and hats per unit above the designated size increased by 12.5%,; Online retail of clothing products increased by 9.2% year on year, 6.2 percentage points lower than the same period in 2021.

Changes in retail growth rate of clothing, shoes and hats and online retail growth rate of clothing products above designated size from 2015 to 2023

Source: National Bureau of Statistics

　　 2. Major international wool textile consumer markets

In addition to the Japanese market, the wool textile consumption in the United States and the European Union showed a significant slowdown in 2023. From January to November, the US wool textile imports totaled US $3.8 billion, down 6.6% year on year. Japan's wool textile imports amounted to 194.4 billion yen (about 1.34 billion US dollars), up 16.7% year on year. From January to September, EU data showed that EU wool textile imports (imports outside the EU) amounted to 3.67 billion euros (about 4 billion dollars), up 2% year on year.

Woolen textile imports from the United States, Japan and the European Union from 2021 to 2023 and their year-on-year changes

Note: The data of the United States and Japan in 2023 is up to November, and the data of the European Union is up to September

Source: Eurostat, Textile and Clothing Office of the US Department of Commerce, Ministry of Finance of Japan

　　 5、 Situation and prospect

Since this year, there has been no new bright spot in the domestic wool textile consumption market. In the second half of the year, the driving force of international wool textile consumption on industry production and operation has also been weakening. Due to the deep influence of the international political and economic situation, geopolitics and the game between big countries, some countries have implemented the so-called "risk reduction", which has led to the "building of walls" and "decoupling and chain breaking". The global supply chain is undergoing a trend of major changes. As an industry with highly globalized division of labor and regional industrial cooperation, the wool textile industry has continuously adjusted its global industrial chain in the past few years. Since this year, the import share of China's wool textile raw materials and products in the United States, the European Union and Japan has declined.

In the complex situation, the whole wool textile industry shows strong toughness under pressure. Based on the new stage of development, China's wool textile industry should focus on high-quality development, constantly consolidate manufacturing advantages, focus on improving basic capabilities and modernization level, actively carry out industry dialogue and exchanges, use international organizations and other platforms, make industry voice and display industry image internationally, create an international environment conducive to the development of China's wool textile manufacturing industry, and expand the circle of international cooperation friends, Realize a new situation of high-quality development of the industry.

(Source: China Wool Textile Industry Association Zhang Shuqin)