At present, the domestic anti-epidemic has achieved a phased victory, and the resumption of work and production of enterprises continues to accelerate. As of mid-April, the resumption rate of large and medium-sized textile and garment enterprises has generally reached more than 80% (the resumption of work in coastal areas such as Zhejiang, Jiangsu, and Shandong) rate is relatively high), the focus of the national economic work has shifted to ensuring production, employment, and exports.
According to data from the General Administration of Customs, my country’s exports in March were 1.29 trillion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 3.5%. Exports from January to February this year fell by 15.9% year-on-year. Compared with January-February, the export decline in March narrowed by 12.4 percentage points; while imports increased by 2.4% in March, the growth rate changed from negative to positive compared with January-February.
In response to the unexpected recovery of imports and exports, my country’s cotton, cotton yarn, gray cloth, clothing and other markets and prices have entered a stabilizing and rebounding channel since April (CF2009 contract price has increased from 10,470 yuan/ton rebounded to 11,750 yuan/ton, an increase of 12.23%), and the confidence of cotton-related companies and investors gradually recovered. As the pressure downstream of cotton is gradually diluted and alleviated, the entire industry chain is expected to be on track after late April.
What factors support cotton spinning mills and weaving companies to be the first to get out of the “quagmire” and achieve a turnaround in production and sales? The author summarizes the following points:
First, the global COVID-19 outbreak broke out on a large scale (Europe and the United States and other countries became the “epicenter”). Due to the implementation of strict city closure prevention and control measures, China was the first to The epidemic has been brought under control, and businesses have resumed work and production.
Second, the domestic market has become the “engine” of consumption, effectively supporting the production of textiles and clothing. Global consumption shrank sharply in the first quarter, which in turn led to a sharp drop in foreign trade orders and a drop in shipping demand. Export-oriented textile and clothing companies and trading companies suffered heavy losses. However, the resumption rate of enterprises has increased rapidly. By the end of March, the resumption rate of industrial enterprises above designated size nationwide had increased to more than 90%, and the resumption rate of small and medium-sized enterprises also exceeded 80%.
The third is the implementation of measures to stabilize foreign trade, and my country’s textile and clothing orders have stabilized. On April 7, the State Council executive meeting once again launched a series of policies to stabilize foreign trade, launching a policy “combination punch” in an effort to stabilize the fundamentals of foreign trade.
Fourthly, with the outbreak of the epidemic in India and some Southeast Asian countries, textile and clothing orders from European and American brands will flow back to China. As India’s lockdown was extended to May 3, large-scale shutdowns of cotton mills, cloth mills, and garment factories, as well as the shutdown of major ports, led to a sharp decline in order-taking and delivery capabilities. The epidemic situation in major textile countries such as Pakistan and Bangladesh is also not optimistic. In Italy, Spain and France, the COVID-19 epidemic is showing signs of slowing down. Leaders of many countries have begun to discuss relaxing measures to ease economic pressure. The United States also plans to press the “reset button”, so buyers and retailers may receive orders one after another. </p
