In May, with the overall improvement of domestic epidemic prevention and control, the steady progress of the resumption of work and production of enterprises, the smooth operation of industrial and supply chains, and the implementation of policies and measures to stabilize growth and promote consumption, etc. , the periodic impact of the domestic epidemic on my country’s garment industry is gradually easing, the industry’s industrial added value has returned to positive growth, domestic sales have improved, and exports have stabilized and rebounded. However, under the market situation of weak demand, high costs and high inventories, the growth rate of clothing production has slowed down, corporate efficiency has been severely pressured, and total profits have turned to negative growth for the first time since 2021. Facing a more severe and complex internal and external development situation, the apparel industry needs to actively respond to many risks and challenges such as the weakening of the global economy, increasing geopolitical risks, intensified trade frictions and rebound of the epidemic, seize the development window period and strategic opportunity period, and continue to Deepen transformation and upgrading, adhere to innovation-driven coordinated development, continuously enhance the safety, controllability and competitiveness of industrial and supply chains, and systematically promote the stable recovery and high-quality development of the industry.
1. Economic operation of the clothing industry
Clothing Production growth slows down
With the efficient and precise coordination of epidemic prevention and control and the accelerated implementation of various policies and measures, the production of garment enterprises in areas where the epidemic has been alleviated has accelerated. In May, the industrial added value of enterprises above designated size in the garment industry reversed the downward trend and achieved positive growth. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, the industrial added value of enterprises above designated size in the garment industry increased by 1.2% year-on-year in May, and the growth rate was 1.5 percentage points higher than in April; from January to May, the industrial added value of enterprises above designated size in my country’s garment industry increased by 5.1% year-on-year, with an increase of 1.5 percentage points from April. The pace slowed down by 1.1 percentage points from January to April. The growth rate of clothing output slowed down. From January to May, enterprises above designated size completed clothing output of 9.343 billion pieces, a year-on-year increase of 0.45%, and the growth rate was 5.19 percentage points slower than that from January to April. In terms of categories, the output of woven clothing was 3.466 billion pieces, a year-on-year increase of 0.12%; the output of knitted clothing was 5.876 billion pieces, a year-on-year increase of 0.64%.
Figure 1 Production growth rate of the garment industry from January to May 2022
Data source: National Bureau of Statistics
The domestic sales market improved significantly
In May, the overall situation of epidemic prevention and control was improving and consumption was promoted Under the combined effect of the effective implementation of policies, domestic market demand has gradually improved, the decline in domestic clothing sales has narrowed, and both physical and online retail sales have improved. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, in May, the retail sales of clothing products by units above designated size fell 20.1% year-on-year, and the decline was 5.5 percentage points narrower than in April; from January to May, the retail sales of clothing goods by units above designated size in my country totaled 362.33 billion yuan. It fell by 10.1% year-on-year, and the decline continued to expand by 2.6 percentage points from January to April. According to data from the China National Commercial Information Center, clothing retail sales of key large-scale retail enterprises in the country fell by 29.94% year-on-year in May, a decline that was 9.92 percentage points narrower than in April. At the same time, the continuous improvement of logistics smoothness and transportation efficiency has played a certain role in stimulating online consumption. From January to May, online retail sales of clothing products fell by 1.6% year-on-year, and the decline was 0.1 percentage points narrower than that from January to April.
Figure 2 Domestic market clothing sales growth from January to May 2022
Data source: National Bureau of Statistics
Export growth has increased significantly
As the policy of stabilizing foreign trade continues to increase and companies resume work and production Steady progress, driven by factors such as the steady recovery of international market demand, the gradual clearing of logistics congestion, and the accelerated release of early backlog orders, China’s clothing export growth rate has increased significantly and returned to double-digit growth space. According to China Customs data, exports of clothing and clothing accessories in May were US$15.199 billion, a year-on-year increase of 24.9%, and the growth rate was 22.5 percentage points higher than in April. From January to May, my country’s total exports of clothing and clothing accessories were US$62.216 billion, a year-on-year increase of 1.02%. %, the growth rate increased by 4 percentage points from January to April.
Figure 3 my country’s exports of clothing and clothing accessories from January to May 2022
Data source: China Customs
The export of needle and woven clothing has accelerated significantly, while the export of epidemic prevention materials has continued to decline significantly. According to China Customs data, the export value of knitted clothing and clothing accessories from January to May was US$32.404 billion, a year-on-year increase of 21.93%, and the growth rate was 3.11 percentage points faster than that from January to April; the export value of woven clothing and clothing accessories was US$27.012 billion, a year-on-year increase of 21.93%. Increased by 17.84%, 3.72 percentage points faster than the growth rate from January to April; from January to May, the export value of plastic and vulcanized rubber glove products was US$1.62 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 70.4%, and the export value of chemical fiber protective clothing was US$490 million, a year-on-year decrease. 65.0%.
my country’s clothing exports to major markets such as the United States, the European Union, and ASEAN have grown strongly, and the decline in clothing exports to Japan has narrowed. According to Chinese customs data, my country’s clothing exports to the United States and the European Union increased by 12.5% and 17.9% year-on-year from January to May. The growth rate was 4.2 and 8.6 percentage points faster than that from January to April respectively. Together they accounted for 42.8% of my country’s total clothing exports. my country’s serviceSince then, as overseas epidemic control has generally been relaxed, demand for clothing in major foreign markets has continued to pick up. In May, U.S. retail sales of clothing and apparel (including footwear) were US$26.32 billion, a year-on-year increase of 6.1%; British textile, clothing and footwear product sales were 4.14 billion pounds (approximately US$5.07 billion), a year-on-year increase of 16.3%. The recovery of demand in foreign markets has driven the steady growth of my country’s clothing exports. At the same time, the state issued a series of policies to stabilize foreign trade, including the “Opinions on Promoting the Stability and Improvement of Foreign Trade” to create good conditions for exports. Since May, with the gradual smoothing of logistics and supply chains, foreign trade companies have resumed production, and early backlog of foreign trade orders have been released, and exports have shown a trend of restorative growth. But we must also note that global economic development is facing huge downward pressure. In June, the World Bank lowered its global economic growth forecast for 2022 to 2.9%. The world economic recession will lead to a contraction in external demand. In addition, the import ban on Xinjiang-related cotton products implemented by the United States and the continued recovery of the garment industry chain in Southeast Asian and South Asian countries have also caused my country’s garment industry exports to face greater competitive pressure and unstable factors.
The new round of transformation and upgrading of the clothing industry has achieved remarkable results
Faced with Affected by the epidemic, local governments have accelerated the structural adjustment of the garment industry and promoted the digital and intelligent transformation and upgrading of the industry, achieving remarkable development results. Yudu, Jiangxi Province, insists on focusing on textiles and clothing as the first industry, adapts to the new development situation of the digital economy, and promotes the transformation and upgrading of the textile and clothing industry from traditional processing to digital, networked, and intelligent, effectively realizing the “fission” development of the clothing industry. Linping, Zhejiang, through the establishment of the Zhejiang Provincial Garment Industry Innovation Service Complex and the “Fashion E-Home” application scenario, completed the digital transformation of small, medium and micro traditional clothing processing enterprises, and realized the transformation from “working independently” of small and scattered workshops to a digital park “Total development”. Shaxi, Zhongshan, seizes the opportunity of live broadcast e-commerce, encourages clothing companies to expand marketing channels through live broadcast e-commerce, promotes the transformation and upgrading of the traditional clothing industry, and strives to cultivate new drivers of economic growth. Continuing to promote industrial transformation and upgrading and continuously stimulating endogenous power and new momentum in the industry will not only help enterprises to hedge against the adverse effects of the epidemic and economic downward pressure, but also are the inevitable way for enterprises to cope with challenges and achieve high-quality development.
