China’s share of European and American clothing imports declines

In the first three quarters of 2020, clothing imports from the 27 EU countries dropped sharply, which varied according to different product series and origins. China’s market share and the proportion of each variety dropped significantly overall. Bangladesh’s share of EU knitwear imports reached 29.7%, while China’s share dropped to 27.2%. Among woven garments, China’s share is 33.5%, and Bangladesh’s is 20.8%. The country accounts for more than 50% of EU T-shirt imports, while China’s share is only 8.1%. The unit price of knitted clothing exported from China to the EU was stable, and the woven clothing series increased by 15.2%. The price of pullovers in China increased by 1.9%, while in Bangladesh it fell by 7.9%. Due to the depreciation of the lira, the prices of many of Turkey’s export products have remained stable and its market share in the EU has expanded. In November this year, U.S. apparel imports recovered for the second consecutive month, with imports from China, Vietnam and Cambodia increasing and unit prices falling year-on-year. Compared with a year ago, U.S. apparel imports in November increased by 9.5% year-on-year, and fell by 4.7% year-on-year in terms of import value. From January to November 2020, U.S. clothing import volume fell by 17.5% year-on-year, and the import value fell by 24%. In November, U.S. clothing imports from China fell by 14.9%, but increased by 11.2% in October. In November, the unit price of U.S. clothing imports fell by more than 20% year-on-year, and the import volume and import value to Vietnam decreased by 24.4% and 13.5% respectively year-on-year. From January to November, Vietnam accounted for 19.8% of U.S. apparel imports, while China accounted for 23.7%. In that month, U.S. clothing imports from India continued to recover, imports from Bangladesh were difficult, and the import value fell by more than 10% year-on-year. The import volume and value of Cambodia increased by 24.5% and 17.8% year-on-year. </p