Global demand for Chinese-made clothing surged in the first four months of the year, with a total valuation of 44.41 billion dollars exported. The data was shared by the General Administration of Customs of China, which said demand was up 51.7 percent over the same period last year.

Exports surged to 44 billion dollars

From January to April, China’s export of textile yarns, fabrics and related products totaled over 43.96 billion dollars, an increase of 18 percent year-on-year.

“While major Western consumer economies emerge from the pandemic ready to spend on fashion and related categories,” wrote the Business of Fashion, “the Chinese supply chain is playing a key role in bringing these products to market. But this increase in demand, coupled with increases in raw material prices and logistical bottlenecks, is making it difficult for different players to keep prices under control.”

China’s growth is not solely happening via exports. Sales of clothing in its domestic market from January to April grew 33.8 percent with an average growth of 8.5 percent in two years, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics of China.

Chinese fabric exporters may be facing competition, however, as rising labour costs in China and the hesitancy from bigger players to stockpile clothing means the export of 9.7 billion dollars of yarn in March is slightly down on the 22 billion dollars exported in January and February.

Still, the data is impressive, as China remains a cornerstone for global fashion exports and a leading manufacturing hub.