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In the first three quarters of this year, China's home textile exports rose to decline, mainly affected by the weakening market demand in the United States and Europe, while other markets remained basically stable.

Cumulative exports turn up to down 

Exports of bedding, curtains and other household products declined 

From January to September, China's home textile exports were 24.78 billion US dollars, down 0.23 percent from a year earlier. Since the second quarter, the cumulative growth rate of home textile exports has narrowed month by month, and the cumulative export rose for the first time in September.

From the perspective of specific products, the export of household products such as bedding and curtains declined significantly, driving the overall export decline by 4.4 and 14.1 respectively. Exports of tablecloths, kitchen supplies and blankets, which can be used outdoors, increased rapidly by 17.3, 14.1 and 9.6 respectively, but the cumulative growth rate was narrower than that of the previous month. Exports of towels, carpets and other decorative products maintained a slight growth, the increase is between 0.3-6%.

Rising prices support exports 

The export volume shows a downward trend 

In the first nine months of this year, except for the export unit price of kitchen supplies, which fell by 6.2, the export unit price of other categories of products maintained growth. Among them, the export unit price of curtains and carpets increased rapidly, 10.3 per cent and 10.5 per cent, respectively, while the export unit price of bedding, blankets and other categories of products maintained a small increase, with an increase of 1%-5%.

In terms of export volume, the export volume of blankets, table cloths and kitchen supplies maintained growth. Among them, kitchen supplies increased rapidly, with an increase of 21.6. Exports of bedding, curtains, towel products and carpets declined, with bedding and curtain products falling by 8.6 per cent and 22.1 per cent, respectively.

Exports fell for two consecutive months. 

In September, home textile exports were 2.94 billion US dollars, down 6.6 per cent, showing a downward trend for two consecutive months, both of which were more than 6 per cent. Judging from the monthly export situation, the overall export situation in each month of last year showed a trend of low before and high after. In the fourth quarter, the monthly export volume was more than 3 billion US dollars. Based on the current monthly export scale and overall export situation, it is expected that my country's home textile foreign trade in the fourth quarter of this year Exports will face greater downward pressure.

The decline in exports to the United States and Europe further expanded. 

In the first nine months, exports of home textile products to the United States were US $7.95 billion billion, down 6.5 percent, an increase of 2.6 percentage points over the previous month; exports to the European Union were US $3.25 billion billion, down 2.9 percent, an increase of 3.4 percentage points over the previous month; exports to Japan were US $2.19 billion billion, an increase of 3.3 percent, an increase of 1.4 percentage points over the previous month.

In other major markets, driven by the implementation of RCEP dividends, China's exports to ASEAN have maintained rapid growth, with exports of US $2.83 billion billion, an increase of 24%. ASEAN has surpassed Japan to become China's third largest textile export market. Exports to the UK and Russia fell sharply, by more than 20%.

The export of electric blankets has become a bright spot. 

Since the beginning of this year, under the background that the upsurge of "home consumption" in the international market has subsided and the export of home textiles has slowed down sharply, the export of electric blankets has soared against the trend due to the energy shortage and soaring prices in Europe caused by the crisis between Russia and Ukraine. In the first three quarters, my country's exports of electric blankets 0.34 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 33.4, 33.7 percentage points higher than the growth rate of home textile exports (-0.3), of which exports to the United States, the European Union and the United Kingdom increased by 43.4, 51.6 and 40.8 respectively.%.

Shanghai gradually recovered 

The overall performance of the Yangtze River Delta region is still weak 

In the second quarter, exports in the Yangtze River Delta region slowed down due to epidemic control, and the decline in exports from provinces and cities narrowed since the third quarter, but the overall performance of the region remained weak. In the first 9 months, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Shandong, Shanghai and Guangdong ranked the top five in the national home textile export provinces and cities. exports from shandong and guangdong maintained steady growth, with increases of 2.8 percent and 13.3 percent respectively. Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Shanghai and other provinces and cities fell in exports, down 3 percent, 6.9 percent and 10.2 percent, respectively, in the end of the second quarter and the third quarter of the three provinces and cities export decline gradually narrowed, in September the decline has further expanded.

Among other provinces and cities, exports from Hunan, Hubei, Xinjiang and Sichuan have grown rapidly, with an increase of more than 50%.

The main market share remained stable overall. 

Growth slower than major competitors 

From January to August, the United States imported 12.79 billion US dollars of home textile products, down 0.58 percent, while imports rose to fall. China ranked first in the source of imports, with imports of US $5.67 billion billion, an increase of 0.8 percent, accounting for 44.3 percent of US imports, an increase of 0.6 percentage points over the same period last year. Among other countries, US imports from Pakistan and Vietnam grew faster, by 9.8 per cent and 24.4 per cent respectively, both of which were narrower than the previous month.

From January to August, the EU imported home textile products to US $7.86 billion billion, an increase of 12.1, and the cumulative growth rate narrowed by 0.1 percentage points from the previous month. China ranked first in the source of imports, with imports of 2.87 billion billion U.S. dollars, an increase of 10.6 percent. The cumulative growth rate narrowed by 0.9 percentage points from the previous month, accounting for 36.5 percent of the EU's imports, a decrease of 0.5 percentage points from the same period last year. Among other countries, EU imports from Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Vietnam grew faster, with a growth rate of 12%-32%.

From January to August, Japan imported home textile products to US $2.3 billion billion, an increase of 4.7, and the cumulative growth rate increased by 2.1 percentage points from the previous month. The cumulative growth rate has increased for three consecutive months. China ranked first in the source of imports, with imports of 1.72 billion billion U.S. dollars, an increase of 4.9 percent. The cumulative growth rate was 1.9 percentage points higher than the previous month, accounting for 74.5 percent of Japan's imports, which was basically the same as the same period last year. Among other countries, Japan's imports from Vietnam grew relatively fast, by 12.2 per cent.

On the whole, inventory pressure at U.S. and European retailers has increased since the fall, with new orders at low levels. In October, a survey of U.S. shippers reported that orders fell to a 12-year low, down 40 percent year-on-year, with household goods at a "higher risk". But with the arrival of the Christmas season, Wal-Mart and other companies said that the inventory situation has improved significantly compared with previous months, and they are full of confidence in the fourth quarter sales. At the same time, falling shipping costs and improved transportation have also created conditions for the market to recover.

From the perspective of the domestic situation, since May this year, the monthly export scale of home textile products has remained between 2.8 billion -3.2 billion US dollars, and the overall stability has remained stable. The fourth quarter of last year was the peak of exports, with monthly exports exceeding US $3 billion. It is expected that exports in the fourth quarter of this year and the whole year will decline slightly compared with the same period last year, but the overall export scale is still at a historically high level, and the industry as a whole will maintain stable operation and development.

(Source: Home Textile Branch of China Textile Import and Export Chamber of Commerce)